TALES

by Poe, Edgar A. (or Edgar Allan Poe, 1809-49)

$15,000 · Offered by Biblio

First edition

New York: Wiley and Putnam, 1845. First Edition. Hardcover. First edition, third issue with the three-line copyright notice naming Wiley and Putnam and the Library of American Books half-title. Octavo: [vi], 228, [4, ads] pp. In the publisher's black gilt-stamped black morocco over plum cloth binding, which has been expertly rebacked. The contents are clean and bright. Some general toning and minor staining to the cloth; otherwise very good. BAL 16146. "...the first important book of detective stories, the first and greatest, the cornerstone of cornerstones...the highest of all high spots...contains for the first time in book form all three Dupin stories" (Queen's Quorum 1). While the tales herein were not selected by Poe (and he expressed reservations about the editor "whose taste does not coincide with my own") they are in the end perhaps the single best representation of his broad range and lasting influence. The 1845 Tales contains not only the invention of modern detective fiction, but also his supreme handling of psychological horror, and contributions to both science fiction and the adventure story.

• Publisher: Wiley and Putnam
• Year: 1845
• Edition: First Edition
• Binding: hardcover

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