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The Glass Key
by Hammett, Dashiell
- Used
- very good
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Very Good
- Seller
-
New York, New York, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1931 First edition, first printing of the author's fourth novel. Bound in the publisher's orange cloth, with a key image stamped in black to the front board, with steel blue and black stamped decorations to the spine. A very good copy with a slight lean to spine, spine ends lightly worn with a touch of fraying to the upper spine, cloth lightly faded, contemporary former owner inscription from 1931 to the front endpaper. Unlike his previous three novels, Hammett's classic crime noir novel The Glass Key does not feature a detective as the main character. However, the novel's protagonist is perhaps Hammett's most hard-boiled; the text features Ned Beaumont, a morally questionable political fixer for the crooked construction magnate Paul Madvig, in a plot that involves a complicated murder case that exposes multiple layers of corruption and betrayal. Said to be one of Hammett's favorites of his own novels, The Glass Key is unusual in that it provides the reader with enough clues that he or she could conceivably solve the mystery before the author reveals the true perpetrator. A Haycraft-Queen Cornerstone. . First Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good.
Synopsis
Dashiell Samuel Hammett was born in St. Mary’s County. He grew up in Philadelphia and Baltimore. Hammett left school at the age of fourteen and held several kinds of jobs thereafter—messenger boy, newsboy, clerk, operator, and stevedore, finally becoming an operative for Pinkerton’s Detective Agency. Sleuthing suited young Hammett, but World War I intervened, interrupting his work and injuring his health. When Sergeant Hammett was discharged from the last of several hospitals, he resumed detective work. He soon turned to writing, and in the late 1920s Hammett became the unquestioned master of detective-story fiction in America. In The Maltese Falcon (1930) he first introduced his famous private eye, Sam Spade. The Thin Man (1932) offered another immortal sleuth, Nick Charles. Red Harvest (1929), The Dain Curse (1929), and The Glass Key (1931) are among his most successful novels. During World War II, Hammett again served as sergeant in the Army, this time for more than two years, most of which he spent in the Aleutians. Hammett’s later life was marked in part by ill health, alcoholism, a period of imprisonment related to his alleged membership in the Communist Party, and by his long-time companion, the author Lillian Hellman, with whom he had a very volatile relationship. His attempt at autobiographical fiction survives in the story “Tulip,” which is contained in the posthumous collection The Big Knockover (1966, edited by Lillian Hellman). Another volume of his stories, The Continental Op (1974, edited by Stephen Marcus), introduced the final Hammett character: the “Op,” a nameless detective (or “operative”) who displays little of his personality, making him a classic tough guy in the hard-boiled mold—a bit like Hammett himself.
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Details
- Bookseller
- B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- DH024
- Title
- The Glass Key
- Author
- Hammett, Dashiell
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Edition
- First Edition
- Publisher
- New York: Alfred A. Knopf
- Date Published
- 1931
- Bookseller catalogs
- Modern Firsts; American Literature; Fiction; Mystery & Detective;
Terms of Sale
B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
~ All items are guaranteed as described. We recommend requesting pictures prior to purchasing. ~ Any items may be returned within seven days of receipt and in the same condition as originally sent. ~ We ship with FedEx, UPS and USPS. Please let us know if you prefer another shipping. ~ New York State are required to add 8.875% sales tax.
About the Seller
B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
Biblio member since 2006
New York, New York
About B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
Selling First Editions and Rare Books from all centuries. Specializing in 19th and 20th century literature, modern first editions, signed and inscribed books, early children's literature, and poetry.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
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