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The Maltese Falcon.
by Hammett, Dashiell
- Used
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- See description
- Seller
-
Palm Beach, Florida, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1930. First edition, first printing of one of the earliest and most influential detective stories of all time. Octavo, original cloth. Near fine in a very good second state dust jacket with professional restoration. Housed in a custom clamshell box. Originally serialized in Black Mask Magazine in 1929, Dashiell Hammet's The Maltese Falcon is considered to be the first hard-boiled detective novel and the progenitor of the genre. The third-person narrative unfolds in San Francisco where private detective Sam Spade is hired to follow Floyd Thursday, the man who has run off with his client, Miss Wonderly's sister. Multiple shootings, romance, and intrigue prevail as Spade is led on a wild goose chase to secure the title object, a foot-high black statuette of unknown but substantial value. The novel was adapted for the screen four times, the third and best-known version, filmed in 1941, is considered to be a film-noir classic starring Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor.
Synopsis
The Maltese Falcon , author Dashiell Hammett’s third novel, set the standard by which all subsequent detective fiction would be judged. Set in San Francisco in the late 1920s, the novel introduces us to private detective Sam Spade, who characterizes the archetype of the hard-boiled detective in his dead-pan pursuit of the recovery of a black figurine. Having worked for a time for the Pinkerton Detective Agency in San Francisco, Hammett reportedly drew upon his years as a detective in creating Spade and many of the other characters for The Maltese Falcon . The Maltese Falcon was originally serialized in HL Mencken’s “pulp” magazine, Black Mask, beginning with the September 1929 issue. For publication of the book form, editor Blanche Knopf tried to tone down the overt sexuality of the magazine version, fearing the references would alienate readers, but Hammett prevailed. However, the 1941 film adaptation starring Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor (the best known of the novel’s three film versions) excised the homosexual subtext of the novel due to Production Code restraints. Today, the movie is considered a film noir classic and the novel is ranked 56th on Modern Library’s “100 Best” English-language novels of the 20th century as well as 54th on The Guardian’s list of the 100 best novels. -
Read More: Identifying first editions of The Maltese Falcon.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Raptis Rare Books
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 139591
- Title
- The Maltese Falcon.
- Author
- Hammett, Dashiell
- Book Condition
- Used
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Publisher
- Alfred A. Knopf
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1930
- Keywords
- Dashiell Hammett First Edition, The Maltese Falcon First Edition
Terms of Sale
Raptis Rare Books
30 day return guarantee, with full refund including shipping costs for up to 30 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed.
About the Seller
Raptis Rare Books
Biblio member since 2012
Palm Beach, Florida
About Raptis Rare Books
Founded by Matthew and Adrienne Raptis, Raptis Rare Books is an antiquarian book firm that specializes in literature, children's books, economics, photo books, signed and inscribed books, and landmark books in all fields. Our business model is simple: we strive to handle books that are in exceptional condition and to provide exceptional customer service.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Second State
- used in book collecting to refer to a first edition, but after some change has been made in the printing, such as a correction,...
- Clamshell Box
- A protective box designed for storing and preserving a bound book or loose sheets. A clamshell box is hinged on one side, with...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- 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...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
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