Kelton, Aryan. Dagmar. San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles: H. S. Crocker Co., Inc., [1924]. First edition. Large 16mo, pp. [1-9] 10-228 [229-232: blank]. Original sage green pictorial cloth, front and spine panels stamped in white. Illustrated with a crude line drawing at frontis signed "Lenoir." A good solid copy of this scarce, self-published book. #3246. $45. This eccentric amateur novel is a hybrid of murder mystery, love story, and marginal occult romance. The action rambles over varied parts of the U.S., including New York City, Denver and Boise, Indiana. The protagonist, a middle-aged clerk, bemoans lost investment opportunities but fancies himself something of an expert on occult matters. When he gets to The Big Apple, he prints up business cards that read, "DAGMAR / The Mystic." The author plants numerous hints of occult matters but doesn't nourish them. The most substantial bit of fantasy relates to the hero's belief that he had been psychically manipulated into visiting a certain hotel so he could be framed for a murder committed by one Jim Burgan, a deed described by the author as "a pre-arranged frame-up arbitrated by a master criminal mental telepathic manifestation, controlled by a demon, who ruled and featured an individual by a mystic will, into his fiendish purpose." The writing is, even by the standards of vanity publishing, a remarkably awkward and disorganized piece of work. The author dipped into similar territory in 1933 with The Great Haddon, a futuristic tale of a nefarious psychoanalyst who tries to take over the country. Smith K-102. Not in Hubin IV or standard fantasy reference works. Seller Inventory # 3246

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Bibliographic Details

Title: Dagmar

Publisher: H. S. Crocker Co, San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles

Publication Date: 1924

Binding: Hardback

Illustrator: Lenoir

Condition: Good

Signed: Signed by Author(s)

Edition: First Edition.

Store Description

When I began my bookselling business in 1996 I called it "Eldritch Books" because that adjective at least partly covered the type of material I offered (and because its similarity to my own surname seemed so -- eldritch). "Ghost stories" would be another handy, if somewhat reductive, term. Most of it is fiction from the 19th and early 20th century with a strong emphasis on the fantastic. Since the most familiar and relevant genre terms in use today -- "science fiction," "fantasy," "supernatural," "horror" -- were not so much in use when these books were first published, pegging them that way can be anachronistic. But that should give you the general idea. I don't have much in the way of American pulp (either in magazine or specialty press book form) but otherwise my interests range widely from high-brow to middle-brow to low-brow to amateur/eccentric. You're more likely to find rare and obscure works here than high spots. (Or at least they're obscure now, whatever their status was when first published.) In 2001 I went to work for L. W. Currey as cataloguer and general assistant. Since 2014 I've been back working on my own. I have exhibited at convention fairs (such as WFC and Readercon) in the past. I began collecting and studying antiquarian fantasy around 1980. Some of my essays have appeared in genre publications such as NYRSF, Wormwood and F&SF. I tend to carefully research my inventory and write extensive notes. (If another dealer wishes to make use of any of these notes, I'd appreciate the courtesy of putting such excerpts in quotes and giving proper attribution to me. That's what I do when I quote from any of my reference works.) I will be gradually listing my inventory on ABE over the coming years. I hope you find something of interest.

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Robert Eldridge, Bookseller
NY, U.S.A.

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Robert Eldridge
P. O. Box 293
Elizabethtown NY 12932
USA.
Tel: 518-873-9966.
Email: rfx51@charter.net.

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I ship only by U.S. Postal Service. All shipments are packed carefully and mailed with insurance and (for domestic shipments) tracking information. Except where specified for extra large items, rates are: Domestic (within USA) Media Mail: $5. Domestic Priority: $10. International First Class (must be under 4 lbs.): $25. International Global Priority (...

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