New York: Knopf, 1981.  First edition of the Nobel Prize Winner's fourth book.

Association Copy, signed and inscribed by Morrison to Bertha “Bert” Krantz, a copy editor who spent 34 years at Random House & a colleague of Morrison, who was herself the first female African-American editor in the publishing house’s history. 
 
Krantz was the longtime copy editor for novelist Cormac McCarthy, who wrote in a 1992 letter upon the publication of “All the Pretty Horses,” “Thanks for your corrections. I hope you understand that they are always welcome. Copy editors are becoming about as rare as any other form of literate life and my offer still stands to have you to read the next book – and/or any future books. I’ll talk to you soon. Much love – Cormac.”  Krantz also appears to have worked on at least two of McCarthy’s earlier works, Suttree and Blood Meridian.
 
Krantz also worked with Ayn Rand on her magnum opus Atlas Shrugged.  Rand was famously protective of the work and refused to allow any changes to the manuscript. Faced with the suggestion to shorten Galt’s speech, Rand responded “Would you cut the Bible?”  However, she did work closely for months with Krantz, who noted: “We were dealing with a manuscript that was more than a thousand pages long—and there were discussions about every comma, every semicolon, every word I questioned. Everything had to be explained to her in painstaking detail, and, according to her philosophy, had to be rational.”  Whatever Krantz did must have clicked with Rand, who inscribed Krantz’s copy of the work “To Bert Krantz — the perfect copy editor — thanking you for your tact, understanding and rationality — affectionately — Ayn Rand.”
 
In addition to the neat association, the book is dated within a week of publication, and the condition is fine indeed – bright, unworn dust wrapper; solid purple topstain; clean, straight boards with sharp corners.