Glendon Swarthout's The Shootist First Edition Marks the End of the American Western

1975. [Western Americana] Glendon Swarthout, The Shootist. First edition. Doubleday and Company: New York, 1975. Measures 5.75" x 8" inches. 186 pages. A classic western, The Shootist follows celebrated gunfighter JB Brooks as he confronts his own mortality, a metaphor for the Western genre also showing its age. The book was adapted into the 1976 film starring John Wayne in his last role. After dominating American film for decades, the western began to decline in the late 1960s and early 70s prompting novels like the Shootist to comment on their own demise. Original dust jacket showing gunslinger vest with pistols in its two leather pockets. Bound in 1/4 black cloth over light brown paper covered boards, spine lettering gilt. Original ownership marked in pen on front free endpaper. Light shelfwear to jacket and spine. Textblock tight, bright and clean. Very good condition.