Tr Nathaniel William Taylor (3 results)

Gebunden. Condition: New.

Condition: New. Print on Demand pp. 274.

Very Scarce First Edition, Worldcat lists only 22 copies of the first edition in institutional holdings and we are aware of no other copies currently on the market. With two engraved plates by Augustus Hoppin and with chapter headpieces and engraved initials Small 8vo, in the publisher's original textured green cloth, the upper cover framed in blind and lettered "A Christmas Story" in gilt with stylized decorative lettering, the design repeated on the rear cover but in blind, the spine blind lettered within a gilt decorative emblem, yellow endpapers. 104 pp. A rare survival in original cloth and in unusually well preserved condition, the text clean and with minimal mellowing, the green cloth bright and unfaded, the hinges firm and intact, a little wear or rubbing to the corners and edges. This is one of the brightest and well preserved copies we have studied. RARE FIRST EDITION. A CIVIL WAR ERA RARITY. AN IMPORTANT WORK ABOUT FORMER SLAVES CELEBRATING THEIR FIRST CHRISTMAS AFTER EMANCIPATION, the story reflects Northern sentiments and pro-emancipation ideals and recounts the first Christmas in the North celebrated by fugitive slaves and those liberated by the Emancipation Proclamation. This scarce first edition is an important fugitive slave novel. The first edition was published toward the end of the Civil War, then re-issued in 1865 at the war's conclusion. It is perhaps the first novel to discuss openly the "N" word and its possible derivation from the word "niger" and how the word was used to denigrate the individual and persist in pre-emancipation prejudice. CONTRABAND CHRISTMAS tells the story of formerly enslaved people ("contrabands") who have taken refuge with Union forces. As Christmas approaches, they will be experiencing the holiday as free individuals for the first time. The story culminates in a Christmas gathering filled with hymns, prayer, and reflection. Themes include freedom, slavery, faith, human dignity, and the transformative impact of the Civil War. One point of note, CONTRABAND CHRISTMAS contains one of the earliest explanations of the entirely derogatory character of the "N" word. Worldcat credits the author as being Taylor Root, but it is sometimes attributed to William Henry Hurlbert. Artist Augustus Hoppin was well known at this time for his Civil War imagery found in Harper's Weekly.