Published by Victor Gollancz, London; 1987. 254pp. 8vo. First edition, first impression. Condition: Fine/Fine
Bound in original black cloth boards with title in gilt to the spine. The binding is square and tight and in excellent condition, with no marks or damage, save a touch of bumping to the spine ends. Inside, the pages are clean and bright, free from blemishes and wear, with barely even a hint of toning and just a little spotting to the top edge.
The book is housed in its equally smart, first issue, dust jacket, illustrated by Paul Wright. It is vibrant and bright and in lovely condition, with just a hint of bumping to the spine ends, but otherwise free from damage.
In all, this is a beautiful example of this first edition by J. G. Ballard. It follow World Health Organisation Doctor, John Mallory, who discovers 6 months after his arrival in Central Africa that guerrilla warfare left him with no patients. And so he dedicates himself to bringing water to the region with dreams of creating a third Nile which would bring the Sahara into flower. After accidentally achieving this, Mallory becomes obsessed with the river, believing it to be his creation, to be owned by him, to be named after him, and to be explored...Combining the prismatic visionary intensity of such works as The Crystal World and The Unlimited Dream Company with the powerful narrative flow of Empire of the Sun, this novel is Ballard at his best and most characteristic (blurb).