2 Bernard Malamud Books The Library of America w/Slipcase New Novels and Stories of the 1940s & 50s 2013 1st Printing Novels and Stories of the 1960s 2013 1st Printing At age thirty-eight, after a long apprenticeship writing stories, Bernard Malamud published his first book, The Natural (1952), and instantly redefined the possibilities of sports fiction. Reimagining the colorful characters and storied episodes of baseball lore, Malamud imbued the tale of Roy Hobbs—a once promising prospect whose first chance at a big-league career had been sabotaged by a deranged female fan—with the grandeur of myth. Armed with Wonderboy, his beloved bat, Roy leads his New York Knights in an unlikely run at the league pennant. #BernardMalamud#thenatural#TheLibraryofAmerica#vintagebooks#bookstore