Books

Hardcover. Condition: Very Good: First edition, first printing with the original text block and the title page bearing William Blackwood's name, locations and the printed date of 1915, denoting a first edition. It contains also the called-for 253 pages of text, followed by two pages of advertisements for Blackwood's books. The complete original text block has been re-cased in an attractive part ivory cloth quarter binding, combined with grey/gold patterned, marbled effect, boards (see image). The spine is clean with hard tips and the boards are firm with pointed corners; there are three tiny spots to the front panel (see image) and no marks to the verso. The end papers are clean; the title page has slight spotting. In his introductory dedication message to Thomas Arthur Nelson, John Buchan refers to the book as the first of his "shockers" featuring Richard Hannay. This page is without spots but is sunned at the edges, as are the rest of the text pages, which are otherwise very tight and without marks or spotting. An attractive and straight binding encasing the original text block with the required first edition date and the advertisement pages at the back featuring "Blackwoods' shilling editions of popular novels" (including Conrad's Lord Jim). The double spacing between the sentences allows for easy, as well as enjoyable, reading.

The Thirty-Nine Steps is an adventure novel by the Scottish author John Buchan. It first appeared as a serial in Blackwood's Magazine in August and September 1915 before being published in book form in October that year by William Blackwood and Sons, Edinburgh. It is the first of five novels featuring Richard Hannay, an all-action hero with a stiff upper lip and a knack for getting out of sticky situations.