
A Brief History
Before LSU Press made its bid for publication of A Confederacy of Dunces in 1980, New Orleans bookseller Rhoda K. Faust had received Thelma Toole's permission to publish her deceased son's now celebrated book. Walker Percy, who was instrumental in bringing the book to the
public, had initially suggested to Faust that she read the manuscript, and he
supported Mrs. Toole's plan that Faust publish it. When the necessary financial backing did not materialize, Faust graciously encouraged Thelma Toole to proceed with the offer she later received from LSU Press. John Kennedy Toole's A Confederacy of Dunces was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1981.
Following the now infamously bizarre history associated with Toole's novel, Faust continued in her determination to found a quality literary press in New Orleans. In time, her efforts with Faust Publishing Company led to the publication of the following four Walker Percy items. The three limited editions are now considered to be collector's items.
WALKER PERCY BOOKS PUBLISHED BY FAUST PUBLISHING CO.
Novel Writing in an Apocalyptic Time
By Walker Percy, Afterword by Eudora Welty
Faust Publishing Co., New Orleans (1986)
30 pages, Illustrated with a Photograph of Walker Percy
and a Photograph of Eudora Welty
Limited Edition of 300 Numbered copies
Deluxe Edition of 100 Numbered Copies
All signed by Walker Percy and Eudora Welty
The State of the Novel: Dying Art or New Science
By Walker Percy
Faust Publishing Co., New Orleans (1988)
25 pages, Illustrated with a Photograph of Walker Percy
Limited Edition of 250 Numbered Copies
Deluxe Edition of 75 Numbered Copies
All signed
Walker Percy: A Comprehensive Descriptive Bibliography
By Linda Whitney Hobson, Foreword by Walker Percy
Faust Publishing Co., New Orleans (1988)
115 pages, Photographs
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