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First Edition (NAP--also, the only titles referenced ('Author of') on the title page (The Circular Staircase, The Man In Lower Ten, When A Man Marries) were published prior to this book. So this was her fourth book, and despite having been published way back in 1910, it is in excellent condition. You can judge for yourself by looking at the photos of the covers. They are exceptionally clean. The illustration and lettering on both the front and spine is very bright and free of wear. There really isn't any significant wear on the covers. The edges are in excellent shape. There is a little crease right below the front top right-hand corner. All four corners are in very good shape, the front bottom one has a speck of light rubbing, nothing much of anything. The spine ends have only a little crinkling. The page edges are quite clean. The book has a moderate forward lean, but is quite solidly bound from cover to cover. I'm not finding any instances of a crack or space between any of the facing pages. The covers are solidly bound as well. There are no cracks or spaces between them and any of the pages. The pages are in really nice condition. I actually turned over all of them. There's not much by way of creasing. I counted 14 of those thin fissure-like creases off the top edges. There are no tears. I didn't see any turned-down corner creases. There are six consecutive pages toward the end of the book that have a tiny nick at their bottom edge, no tear, quite minor. The pages are exceptionally clean. I didn't see one instance of anything I would call soiling, and the pages are fairly bright. The white inside covers and end papers are also quite clean. The frontispiece has a tissue guard protecting it. Both the frontispiece and tissue guard are in excellent shape. Beside the frontispiece, there are 3 full-page black-and-white illustrations ( by artist Arthur I. Keller), all in excellent shape. There isn't any foxing in the book. There are no markings. No attachments. And no one has written their name or anything else anywhere. You can see the very rare dust jacket in the first few photos. I've had it in a fitted protective cover for as long as I've owned the book. You can see that there are losses at and around both spine ends. There's also a small loss off the top edge of the rear cover. There's a tear off the top edge of the front that's not easy to see. It does come down to around the hair of the woman, but it's thin and pretty much closed, looks more like a crease. The dust jacket is quite clean. There is nothing printed on the flaps. They have some creasing and a smallish tear/crease on the rear flap. Also scuffing and a small loss just off the edge between the front cover and front flap. The flaps are not clipped. 'Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876-1958) was an American writer, often called the American Agatha Christie, although her first mystery novel was published 12 years before Christie's first novel in 1920. Rinehart is considered the source of the phrase "The butler did it" from her novel The Door (1930), although the novel does not use the exact phrase. Rinehart is also considered to have invented the "Had-I-but-Known" school of mystery writing, with the publication of The Circular Staircase (1908). During her prime, Rinehart was said to be even more famous than her rival, the great Agatha Christie. At the time of Rinehart's death, her books had sold over 10 million copies.' The White Cat, Rinehart's mystery in which Mr. Jack Knox, attorney-at-law, has to figure out who murdered his client Margery's father, where her aunt disappeared, and why valuables were stolen-- all before he disappears next. Oh, and did we mention the young lady's fiancé is a suspect and that The White Cat is a clandestine political club, known for serving beer, illegal favors, along with an occasional murder. Our favorite Jack Knox quote: "In my criminal work anything that wears skirts is a lady, until the law proves her otherwise." '. Seller Inventory # 003664
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Bibliographic Details
Title: The Window At The White Cat
Publisher: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Indianapolis, Indiana
Publication Date: 1910
Binding: Hardcover
Illustrator: Arthur I. Keller
Condition: Very Good
Dust Jacket Condition: Good
Edition: 1st Edition
