Rollins THE SHADOW BEFORE 1934 Inscribed First

Title: The Shadow Before
Author: William Rollins, Jr.
Publisher: Robert M. McBride & Company
Printing Year: 1934 Inscribed first edition

Condition/Details: Bound in black cloth with bright orange embossing, this antique volume is a scarce novel from the literary tradition that has come to be known as American proletarian fiction. Rollins, as a novelist and journalist (he was a contributor to the journal "New Masses), identified with the idea of a literary production oriented toward the reflection of/on class struggle, and this book is a fictional account of a Massachusetts textile strike, based in large measure on the famous 1929 strike in Gastonia, North Carolina. The work was praised by John Dos Passos in the April 4, 1934 issue of "The New Republic" for its extraordinary characterization and use of language. Rollins would go on to write a Spanish Civil War novel entitled "Wall of Men" and a mystery. The author has written the following inscription on the front endpaper: "For/Dorothy (illegible last name)/who helped give this book/a shove/ Bill Rollins/March 21, 1934. The volume shows external age/wear, with minor soiling to covers. Hinges are cracked. Pages are bright and clean. The book measures approximately 6" x 8.25" and contains 389 pages. Shipping cost (within the U.S.) for this lot will be: $4.50