Bookman’s Holiday. By Vincent Starrett. First Edition, First Printing. Random House. New York, 1942.

Vincent Starrett was a genre author in the mid-twentieth century who published detective stories and horror stories as well as “Books Alive”, a popular column in the Chicago Daily Tribune. Starrett was also a vibrant book collector. He wrote several texts about the gentle madness, including this volume, Bookman’s Holiday: The Private Satisfactions of an Incurable Collector. It is a memoir framed around Starrett’s collecting habits and experiences. Some chapters focus on his particular collecting niches. Others describe topics of his research conducted through collecting. Most of them are lighthearted, told through narrative, and relatable to the mid-twentieth century collector.

This first edition, first printing is in good condition. In the original red cloth with pictorial pastedowns, very good with only bumping to spine ends, small closed tear to head of spine, and minor soiling. Text block fine. In the original dust jacket, good with large chip and closed tear to front panel, chipping and rubbing to corners and spine, and pencil to back flap. Price clipped.

A good first edition of Bookman’s Holiday.