The Sign of Four. [A Sherlock Holmes Story] by DOYLE, Sir Arthur Conan

London: Alfred A. Knopf, 1931. Hardcover. Near Fine. First edition, preceding the American edition, and first issue, with the Knopf imprint (later issues have the Cassell imprint). Attractive engraved bookplate on the front pastedown, slightly cocked, and with a small, not too obtrusive stain on the front board, otherwise near fine, lacking the rare dustwrapper. A very attractive copy of the author's fourth book. This true first, English edition is exceptionally uncommon, and flat out rare in the jacket (which this copy lacks). Knopf published in the U.K. for only a few years, and generally produced very small editions.

LONDON: WARD, LOCK, AND CO. LTD. VERY GOOD WITHOUT D.J.. PUB 1902. FIRST EDITION. HARDCOVER. ISBN: PRINGLE WAS KIND OF A GENTLEMAN THIEF. THIS IS THE QUEEN'S QUORUM TITLE (# 30) OF LEGENDARY RARITY WHICHQUEEN HIMSELF OPINES WAS "DESTINED TO BECOME THE RAREST VOLUME OFDETECTIVE-CRIME SHORT STORIES PUBLISHED IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY." IN1951 QUEEN REPORTED: "BIBLIOPHILES AND BOOKSCOUTS HAVE SCOURED ENGLANDAND AMERICA, SEEKING IN THE MOST LIKELY AND UNLIKELY PLACES; YET AFTERNEARLY FIFTY YEARS OF EAGLE-EYED AND EXPERT EXCAVATING, THE RECORDEDCOPIES TOTAL EXACTLY SIX- NO MORE, NO LESS." THE ADRIAN GOLDSTONE COPYWHICH WAS RESOLD AT SOTHEBY'S IN DECEMBER 2000 HAS BLUE CLOTH COVEREDBOARDS. ONE WONDERS IF THERE WERE INDEED SO FEW COPIES WHY MORE THAN ONECOLOR OF CLOTH WAS USED, BUT AFTER ANOTHER 55 YEARS SINCE QUEEN MADE THEABOVE STATEMENT ONLY A FEW OTHERS SEEMED TO HAVE TURNED UP SO HISORIGINAL INFORMAL CENSUS MAY BE SOMETHING OTHER THAN EXAGERATION WHICHWAS HOW IT WAS CHARACTERIZED IN THE 1981 ADRIAN… Read More

New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1943. First Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. Good/Very Good. 1943 Houghton Mifflin TRUE FIRST EDITION of this Ultra-SCARCE classic! This is a more than decent but flawed copy and in Good/VG condition. Most importantly this copy has the elusive title page with "1943" on the title page, the only designation of a true first! It is ex-library with a variant or rebound boards in a dark pebbled blue. Inside the end pages have a spiderweb pattern and there are the usual library marks on these. Since it was war time these books were so very cheaply produced with numerous publication flaws. The text however is very tight with very tiny marks on several pages but overall and very clean copy. **THE INCREDIBLY ELUSIVE FIRST STATE DJ is unclipped DJ is a the TRUE first edition and is just a tad larger than the boards. **BONUS** Laid in is a *SIGNED* note by Capsary, " Love and good wishes for all holidays and all year-VERA." Also receive the First Edition of… Read More

NY: Dick & Fitzgerald (1865). 1st ed., 1865. 8vo. 186 pp. + [2] pp. ads. Original printed orange wrappers, with ads front verso and rear recto and verso. Seminal in the development of modern American detective fiction, John Brampton Williams' Leaves from the Note Book of a New York Detective is considered to be the first instance of American detective fiction. This collection of 29 short stories opens with the title piece which recounts the meeting between a medical doctor, John Babbington Williams (the actual author of the stories), and detective James Brampton. They become acquaintances, and after Brampton has retired after twenty years of service, he sends his case notebooks to Dr. Williams to be edited and published. In each of the stories private investigator Brampton uses his superior powers of deduction and penetrating observation to solve the crimes and anticipates by twenty years 19th century's most famous sleuth, Sherlock Holmes. The stories include: "The Silver Pin,"… Read More

New York and London: Harper & Brothers, 1930., 1930. First edition. First edition. Publisher's "A-E" code on copyright page. Author's first novel. Former owner's neat inked name on the front pastedown sheet (completely covered by the dust jacket flap), with yellow Harper's seal at back of book removed (as is nearly always the case), leaving only a tiny remnant attached to page.211 and the rear fly leaf. Near Fine, bright copy in dust jacket with gentle sunning to spine, with light restoration to the spine ends and corners. Carr's first novel, a formidable locked-room mystery introducing his flamboyant Parisian character Henri Bencolin. Bencolin's case involves "an impossible murder in a gambling club - the victim, seen to enter an empty room with all entrances under observation, is subsequently found there, beheaded" (Twentieth-Century Crime and Mystery Writers (2nd ed.), p.146). Dust jacket promotional blurb says "When the police burst into the… Read More

London: Alfred A. Knopf, 1931. Hardcover. Near Fine. First edition, preceding the American edition, and first issue, with the Knopf imprint (later issues have the Cassell imprint). Attractive engraved bookplate on the front pastedown, slightly cocked, and with a small, not too obtrusive stain on the front board, otherwise near fine, lacking the rare dustwrapper. A very attractive copy of the author's fourth book. This true first, English edition is exceptionally uncommon, and flat out rare in the jacket (which this copy lacks). Knopf published in the U.K. for only a few years, and generally produced very small editions.

LONDON: WARD, LOCK, AND CO. LTD. VERY GOOD WITHOUT D.J.. PUB 1902. FIRST EDITION. HARDCOVER. ISBN: PRINGLE WAS KIND OF A GENTLEMAN THIEF. THIS IS THE QUEEN'S QUORUM TITLE (# 30) OF LEGENDARY RARITY WHICHQUEEN HIMSELF OPINES WAS "DESTINED TO BECOME THE RAREST VOLUME OFDETECTIVE-CRIME SHORT STORIES PUBLISHED IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY." IN1951 QUEEN REPORTED: "BIBLIOPHILES AND BOOKSCOUTS HAVE SCOURED ENGLANDAND AMERICA, SEEKING IN THE MOST LIKELY AND UNLIKELY PLACES; YET AFTERNEARLY FIFTY YEARS OF EAGLE-EYED AND EXPERT EXCAVATING, THE RECORDEDCOPIES TOTAL EXACTLY SIX- NO MORE, NO LESS." THE ADRIAN GOLDSTONE COPYWHICH WAS RESOLD AT SOTHEBY'S IN DECEMBER 2000 HAS BLUE CLOTH COVEREDBOARDS. ONE WONDERS IF THERE WERE INDEED SO FEW COPIES WHY MORE THAN ONECOLOR OF CLOTH WAS USED, BUT AFTER ANOTHER 55 YEARS SINCE QUEEN MADE THEABOVE STATEMENT ONLY A FEW OTHERS SEEMED TO HAVE TURNED UP SO HISORIGINAL INFORMAL CENSUS MAY BE SOMETHING OTHER THAN EXAGERATION WHICHWAS HOW IT WAS CHARACTERIZED IN THE 1981 ADRIAN… Read More

New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1943. First Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. Good/Very Good. 1943 Houghton Mifflin TRUE FIRST EDITION of this Ultra-SCARCE classic! This is a more than decent but flawed copy and in Good/VG condition. Most importantly this copy has the elusive title page with "1943" on the title page, the only designation of a true first! It is ex-library with a variant or rebound boards in a dark pebbled blue. Inside the end pages have a spiderweb pattern and there are the usual library marks on these. Since it was war time these books were so very cheaply produced with numerous publication flaws. The text however is very tight with very tiny marks on several pages but overall and very clean copy. **THE INCREDIBLY ELUSIVE FIRST STATE DJ is unclipped DJ is a the TRUE first edition and is just a tad larger than the boards. **BONUS** Laid in is a *SIGNED* note by Capsary, " Love and good wishes for all holidays and all year-VERA." Also receive the First Edition of… Read More

NY: Dick & Fitzgerald (1865). 1st ed., 1865. 8vo. 186 pp. + [2] pp. ads. Original printed orange wrappers, with ads front verso and rear recto and verso. Seminal in the development of modern American detective fiction, John Brampton Williams' Leaves from the Note Book of a New York Detective is considered to be the first instance of American detective fiction. This collection of 29 short stories opens with the title piece which recounts the meeting between a medical doctor, John Babbington Williams (the actual author of the stories), and detective James Brampton. They become acquaintances, and after Brampton has retired after twenty years of service, he sends his case notebooks to Dr. Williams to be edited and published. In each of the stories private investigator Brampton uses his superior powers of deduction and penetrating observation to solve the crimes and anticipates by twenty years 19th century's most famous sleuth, Sherlock Holmes. The stories include: "The Silver Pin,"… Read More

New York and London: Harper & Brothers, 1930., 1930. First edition. First edition. Publisher's "A-E" code on copyright page. Author's first novel. Former owner's neat inked name on the front pastedown sheet (completely covered by the dust jacket flap), with yellow Harper's seal at back of book removed (as is nearly always the case), leaving only a tiny remnant attached to page.211 and the rear fly leaf. Near Fine, bright copy in dust jacket with gentle sunning to spine, with light restoration to the spine ends and corners. Carr's first novel, a formidable locked-room mystery introducing his flamboyant Parisian character Henri Bencolin. Bencolin's case involves "an impossible murder in a gambling club - the victim, seen to enter an empty room with all entrances under observation, is subsequently found there, beheaded" (Twentieth-Century Crime and Mystery Writers (2nd ed.), p.146). Dust jacket promotional blurb says "When the police burst into the… Read More