Books

First American edition of James' account of his trip throughout the United States between 1904 and 1905. Octavo, original blue cloth, gilt tooling to the front panel and spine. In very good condition. Housed in a custom half morocco chemise and clamshell box. A nice example. The American Scene is undoubtedly the most controversial and critically discussed of James' travel books for its sharp attack on what James saw as the rampant materialism and frayed social structure of turn-of-the-century America. Covering James' travels throughout the country, the book still has relevance to a number topics which affect the current sociopolitical environment including immigration policy, environmental protection, economic growth, and racial tensions.

The American is a novel by Henry James, originally published as a serial in The Atlantic Monthly in 1876-77 and then as a book in 1877. The novel is an uneasy combination of social comedy and melodrama concerning the misadventures of its eponymous hero, Newman, an essentially good-hearted but rather unsophisticated American businessman who is confronted with the Machiavellian world of Parisian society and its complex codes of honour.