Kept Woman
New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1929. Arthur Hawkins, Jr. First Edition. Hardcover in Dust Jacket. 8vo. Pp.[2] 3-203. Bound in green cloth with black lettering and rules stamped on front cover and spine. A bright copy with the only condition issue being a light, shallow dampstain at the top of the front free endpaper. In the illustrated dust jacket, just slightly age-toned. Fine / Near Fine. Item #5718 Dust jacket illustrated by Arthur Hawkins, Jr. with a sensuous tablea amid angular shadows and geometric forms. Dust jacket now enclosed in a removable, clear archival sleeve.
First edition of the second novel by Vina Delmar (1903-1990), following her sensational bestseller Bad Girl. Addressing taboo subjects including premarital sex and pregnancy set among tenement life, her novels gained initial notoriety and success by being banned or threatened with bans. To capitalize on the popularity of Bad Girl, Delmar quickly published two successive titles, also suggestive and gritty, including the book at hand and Loose Ladies. She then departed New York for Hollywood. There she wrote for the movies, with The Awful Truth (Cary Grant and Irene Dunne) garnering lasting fame as one of the best screwball comedies.
Price: $175.00