Little Sister, The by Chandler, Raymond - 1949

London: Macmillan, 1977. First edition. Hardcover. Near Fine/fine. A very nice copy of the first Brother Cadfael novel. In this book Edith Pargeter combined her excellent historical novel abilities with her nom-de-plume Ellis Peters' well-constructed mysteries and started the boom in historical mysteries that continues to this day. There are many earlier examples of the form, but this is where it takes off and becomes a major publishing category. Historically important, well written, and a scarce book to find in nice condition. This copy has a previous owner's minuscule inscription on the front free endpaper (signature and date of 10 Dec 77, and the cryptic notation "F.E." indicating it was purchased through British bookseller Francis Edwards Ltd.), and very slight bumping to the spine, both head and tail, creasing the jacket slightly. The jacket is unclipped, and the book was not read more than once or twice. A nice copy of a cornerstone volume. Any photo attached to my listings are of the actual… Read More

NY: Alfred Knopf, 1939. 1st Edition . Hardcover. Good/Fair. 1939 Knopf Stated First edition in G+/Fair condition. A classic and very rare true first with a first state DJ! The HB is missing it's ffep and a small square from the rear end paper. The book is unmarked and clean with only minor edge and corner wear. There is a bookseller stamp on the inside board. The unclipped DJ shows a price of $ 2.00 and still has bright coloring. The rear cover is missing a large "V" affecting Ambler's picture and part of the top 1/2 of text. There is wear and minor paper loss at the corners. edges and spine ends. However despite these flaws a solid copy of this elusive mystery!

NY: Morrow, 1932. First edition. Hard cover in original cloth. Author's scarce first book. Published NY: William Morrow Company, 1932, first printing. 8vo., 266pp., purple cloth with yellow titles. Spine and cover edges sunned, pastedowns and a few pages have mild foxing, else clean and bright. Very good. Only eight copies in WorldCat. . 1st. Hard. Very Good/No Jacket. 8vo.

320 pages. Small octavo (7 1/2" x 5 1/4") bound in original publisher's maroon with silver lettering to spine in original pictorial jacket. Jacket design by Fritz Wegner. (Bruccoli A10.1.a.) First edition, first printing. The English edition preceded the American by a few months.Critics and writers, ranging from W. H. Auden to Evelyn Waugh to Ian Fleming, greatly admired the finely wrought prose of Raymond Chandler. Although his swift-moving, hardboiled style was inspired mostly by Dashiell Hammett, his sharp and lyrical similes are original: "The muzzle of the Luger looked like the mouth of the Second Street tunnel"; "The minutes went by on tiptoe, with their fingers to their lips", defining private eye fiction genre, and leading to the coining of the adjective 'Chandleresque', which is subject and object of parody and pastiche. Yet, Philip Marlowe is not a stereotypical tough guy, but a complex, sometimes sentimental man of few friends, who attended university, speaks some Spanish and, at times,… Read More

Blakeney, Glos: England: Scorpion Press 1995, 1995. 1st ed. Fine in unprinted acetate dust jacket as issued. Red goatskin with various colors mixed into charcoal patterned marbled paper sides, red top edge and charcoal end papers. LIMITED EDITION, one of 15 LETTERED DE LUXE COPIES, This being LETTER "K". SIGNED BY ALL 28 CONTRIBUTORS which include H.R.F. Keating, Michael Lewin,. Susan Moody, Candace Robb, Reginald Hill, Margaret Yorke, Liza Cody, Lindsey Davis, Charlotte & Aaron Elkins, John Harvey, H.R.F. Keating, Peter Lovesey, Susan Moody, Peter Robinson... Ian Rankin signed some of the books in the manner of "Knots and Crosses" a reference to his first novel and that each one is different. The signature pages are continued at the rear of the book. An unusual and desirable item. From the beginning Scorpion Press decided to include four elements: all books were autographed by the author (or authors); additional material was commissioned about the author; print runs… Read More

London: Macmillan, 1977. First edition. Hardcover. Near Fine/fine. A very nice copy of the first Brother Cadfael novel. In this book Edith Pargeter combined her excellent historical novel abilities with her nom-de-plume Ellis Peters' well-constructed mysteries and started the boom in historical mysteries that continues to this day. There are many earlier examples of the form, but this is where it takes off and becomes a major publishing category. Historically important, well written, and a scarce book to find in nice condition. This copy has a previous owner's minuscule inscription on the front free endpaper (signature and date of 10 Dec 77, and the cryptic notation "F.E." indicating it was purchased through British bookseller Francis Edwards Ltd.), and very slight bumping to the spine, both head and tail, creasing the jacket slightly. The jacket is unclipped, and the book was not read more than once or twice. A nice copy of a cornerstone volume. Any photo attached to my listings are of the actual… Read More

NY: Alfred Knopf, 1939. 1st Edition . Hardcover. Good/Fair. 1939 Knopf Stated First edition in G+/Fair condition. A classic and very rare true first with a first state DJ! The HB is missing it's ffep and a small square from the rear end paper. The book is unmarked and clean with only minor edge and corner wear. There is a bookseller stamp on the inside board. The unclipped DJ shows a price of $ 2.00 and still has bright coloring. The rear cover is missing a large "V" affecting Ambler's picture and part of the top 1/2 of text. There is wear and minor paper loss at the corners. edges and spine ends. However despite these flaws a solid copy of this elusive mystery!

NY: Morrow, 1932. First edition. Hard cover in original cloth. Author's scarce first book. Published NY: William Morrow Company, 1932, first printing. 8vo., 266pp., purple cloth with yellow titles. Spine and cover edges sunned, pastedowns and a few pages have mild foxing, else clean and bright. Very good. Only eight copies in WorldCat. . 1st. Hard. Very Good/No Jacket. 8vo.

320 pages. Small octavo (7 1/2" x 5 1/4") bound in original publisher's maroon with silver lettering to spine in original pictorial jacket. Jacket design by Fritz Wegner. (Bruccoli A10.1.a.) First edition, first printing. The English edition preceded the American by a few months.Critics and writers, ranging from W. H. Auden to Evelyn Waugh to Ian Fleming, greatly admired the finely wrought prose of Raymond Chandler. Although his swift-moving, hardboiled style was inspired mostly by Dashiell Hammett, his sharp and lyrical similes are original: "The muzzle of the Luger looked like the mouth of the Second Street tunnel"; "The minutes went by on tiptoe, with their fingers to their lips", defining private eye fiction genre, and leading to the coining of the adjective 'Chandleresque', which is subject and object of parody and pastiche. Yet, Philip Marlowe is not a stereotypical tough guy, but a complex, sometimes sentimental man of few friends, who attended university, speaks some Spanish and, at times,… Read More

Blakeney, Glos: England: Scorpion Press 1995, 1995. 1st ed. Fine in unprinted acetate dust jacket as issued. Red goatskin with various colors mixed into charcoal patterned marbled paper sides, red top edge and charcoal end papers. LIMITED EDITION, one of 15 LETTERED DE LUXE COPIES, This being LETTER "K". SIGNED BY ALL 28 CONTRIBUTORS which include H.R.F. Keating, Michael Lewin,. Susan Moody, Candace Robb, Reginald Hill, Margaret Yorke, Liza Cody, Lindsey Davis, Charlotte & Aaron Elkins, John Harvey, H.R.F. Keating, Peter Lovesey, Susan Moody, Peter Robinson... Ian Rankin signed some of the books in the manner of "Knots and Crosses" a reference to his first novel and that each one is different. The signature pages are continued at the rear of the book. An unusual and desirable item. From the beginning Scorpion Press decided to include four elements: all books were autographed by the author (or authors); additional material was commissioned about the author; print runs… Read More