Skip to content

No image available

Scarlet Letter, a Romance

No image available

Scarlet Letter, a Romance

by Nathaniel Hawthorne

  • Used
  • very good
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Very Good
Seller
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 2 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Cotuit, Massachusetts, United States
Item Price
A$5,439.35
Or just A$5,408.27 with a
Bibliophiles Club Membership
A$7.77 Shipping to USA
Standard delivery: 7 to 14 days

More Shipping Options

Payment Methods Accepted

  • Visa
  • Mastercard
  • American Express
  • Discover
  • PayPal

About This Item

Boston: Ticknor, Reed and Fields. Very Good. 1850. First Edition; First Printing. Leather. First edition, first state with all points. Full crushed red leather, double gilt rules at edges, 6 raised bands on spines with gilt boxes (4 with As) author and title. All edges gilt . Scarlet A with gilt edges laid in on front cover. March 1, 1850 ads at rear. Cloth covers and spine laid in at rear. Spine a little faded, small dull spots on front and rear covers. Ink gift inscription of 1950 on end paper. Very handsome. .

Synopsis

The Scarlet Letter: A Romance (1850) is considered the American author Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'masterwork.' A work of historical fiction set in the Massachusetts Bay Colony during the Puritan settlement of 1642-1949 itells the story of Hester Prynne, who after having a child as a result of an extra-marital affair attempts to live a life of repentance and dignity although she is marked by having to wear a Scarlett A on her person. Throughout the novel, Hawthorne explores themes of legalism, sin, and guilt. The Scarlett Letter was one of the first mass-produced novels in the United States, prior printing of books generally done by hand. The 2,500 copies first printed sold out in days, and the mass-production of books opened up conversation about books and authors to a wider-audience on a national level. The first edition of The Scarlet Letter sold out in ten days and “made Hawthorne’s fame, changed his fortune and gave to our literature its first symbolic novel a year before the appearance of Melville’s Moby-Dick” (Bradley). Although an instant best-seller, the books sales over fourteen years only brought the author $1500.

Read More: Identifying first editions of Scarlet Letter, a Romance

Reviews

On Oct 4 2010, Erhanilhan said:
An absolute criticism of Puritan society. Hawthorne portrays the hypocritic sides of the society by pointing its discrepancies and ill-interpreted biblical sides deeds. He also shows that the society was not working in the name of god as stated; instead worked for a group of people (especially powerful) that keep the lines in hand.

(Log in or Create an Account first!)

You’re rating the book as a work, not the seller or the specific copy you purchased!

Details

Bookseller
Isaiah Thomas Books US (US)
Bookseller's Inventory #
11001
Title
Scarlet Letter, a Romance
Author
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Format/Binding
Leather
Book Condition
Used - Very Good
Edition
First Edition; First Printing
Binding
Hardcover
Publisher
Ticknor, Reed and Fields
Place of Publication
Boston
Date Published
1850

Terms of Sale

Isaiah Thomas Books

30 day return guarantee, with full refund including shipping costs for up to 15 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed or damaged.

About the Seller

Isaiah Thomas Books

Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 2 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Biblio member since -1
Cotuit, Massachusetts

About Isaiah Thomas Books

Member: Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America, International League of Antiquarian Booksellers, Massachusetts and Rhode Island Antiquarian Booksellers. "One of the finest in N.E. (&) the premier used book shop on Cape Cod" - Used Book Lovers Guide. We have about 70,000 booksv Located half way between Falmouth and Hyannis, we are named in honor of the famous colonial era printer and philantrophist, founder (1812) of the American Antiquarian Society in Worcester, where we in 1969. There we were stewards and renewers of a decorative Queen Anne Victorian. On Cape Cod since 1969, we take care of the newest (1860) Crocker family home in Barnstable's village of Cotuit: a tall peaked Italianate now painted pink and four other colors. The owner's training has included work in four libraries and apprenticeship with the Irving Ephraim (1908) - 1989) who began his own career during the depression. Assistants have always known the meaning of "book person." Remembering with fondness Mr. E. and the enormous influence of our home town librarians, we try to continue their tradition of service. Open Tues. - Sat. 10 - 5, Sun. 12 - 5. Open Monday in the summer.

Glossary

Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

Edges
The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
Raised Band(s)
Raised bands refer to the ridges that protrude slightly from the spine on leather bound books. The bands are created in the...
Spine
The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
First Edition
In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
First State
used in book collecting to refer to a book from the earliest run of a first edition, generally distinguished by a change in some...
Cloth
"Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
Gilt
The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...

Frequently asked questions

This Book’s Categories

tracking-