The Ensign’s Prize

The Ensign’s Prize

The Heinlein Society is offering sets and individual copies of some of Robert A. Heinlein’s better known novels and short story collections, first to our membership, then to the general public.

These books were gifted to The Heinlein Society by Virginia Heinlein, widow of author Robert A. Heinlein, after her successful prosecution of copyright infringement by the  publisher. The settlement included all remaining copies of the pirated books in the infringer’s possession. This initially included only seven hardbound books, but an eighth book was found later and added to what would become the Ensign’s Prize. Read the whole story at https://www.heinleinsociety.org/newsletters/07JunNL.pdf

The Ensign’s Prize books will be initially offered to members of The Heinlein Society only. There will be 25 of 26 sets offered. THS has reserved set 1 for the society. Each set will contain a copy of Methuselah’s Children; Stranger In A Strange Land; Life Line; Ordeal in Space; Sixth Column; The Green Hills of Earth; The Menace From Earth and The Notebooks of Lazarus Long which is the only known hardcover ever published of Notebooks. A set of eight hardcover books will be offered for a suggested donation of $425 plus shipping & handling. Overseas shipping will be determined at time of donation.

Numbering on individual copies of books will begin with number 27 and will indicate how many copies of that particular book there are (e.g., 27 of 33 or 27 of 83) remaining copies to be sold individually. Sets are numbered 1 through 26. Numbering on individual copies will begin with number 27 and will indicate how many copies of that particular book there are. There are some rare editions here to add to your collection. A prime example is the only known hardcover edition of The Notebooks of Lazarus Long with lettering by D.F. Vassallo.

The numbers of available individual copies varies by book with no individual copies of Methuselah’s Children. Only a handful of individual copies of Stranger in a Strange Land (5) are  available. All individual copies will be offered for a suggested donation of $60 each except for The Notebooks of Lazarus Long which is offered for a suggested donation of $75 each with shipping & insurance on single books TBD.

A small caveat regarding the condition of the books. These were pirated copies of Heinlein’s work and apparently no great expense was put into the publishing of the books. As we started putting sets together we realized that a few copies had minor condition issues. These issues include bent corners on the covers/spines, fugitive ink (most noticeable on Notebooks) and a few with a broken hinge but intact crash that we have had professionally  repaired. We will note any condition issues of which we are aware. Currently it looks like two sets may have slightly damaged copies of Methuselah’s Children (bent corner cover) and/or Stranger in a Strange Land (repaired hinges).

These books/sets are used as a fundraiser to support projects and programs of The Heinlein Society, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to paying it forward. Proceeds from these books/sets will be used to support projects and programs of The Heinlein Society such as the scholarship program and Heinlein For Heroes.

Details