They Gave Him a Gun
New York: Harrison Smith and Robert Haas / Grosset & Dunlap, 1936. Anderson, Harry. Reissue. Hard Cover. Very Good / Good. Item #2352401
Appears to be an original edition married to the movie tie-in jacket (Harrison Smith and Robert Haas listed on title page and spine, Grosset & Dunlap on jacket), but it's possible Grosset purchased unsold copies from Smith & Haas and added their own jacket, so we are calling this a reissue rather than a first edition married to a reissue jacket. Board edges slightly faded, jacket edges rubbed with some loss from corners. Binding tight and square, text clean, bright, and unmarked.
Harry Anderson jacket art depicting a World War I soldier in a trench, shown in a similar pose as a Prohibition-era gangster. Rear jacket flap advertises Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms. This novel inspired the 1937 film starring Spencer Tracy as the protagonist, who struggles to return to his old life after the war, and ends up turning to a life of crime informed by the skills he learned as a soldier. An interesting juxtaposition of the military novel and noir crime fiction, which also examines the disconnection many veterans feel upon returning home. Cowen served in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during World War I, for which he was awarded the Military Cross.
Price: $225.00