Maggie: A Girl of the Streets

vi+158+[12 ad] pages. Small octavo (7 1/2" x 5 1/4") bound in original publisher's cloth with black lettering to spine, red decorative florets to cover and Maggie in gilt with black back ground, deckle edges. Housed in red slipcase. (BAL 4075) Two states noted, (1) Title page printed in upper and lower case letters and (2) Title page printed in capital letters only. First edition, first printing under Crane's name.

Maggie: A Girl of the Streets is an 1893 novella by American author Stephen Crane (1871-1900). The story centers on Maggie, a young girl from the Bowery who is driven to unfortunate circumstances by poverty and solitude. The work was considered risque by publishers because of its literary realism and strong themes. Crane, who was 22 years old at the time, financed the book's publication himself, although the original 1893 edition was printed under the pseudonym Johnston Smith. After the success of 1895's The Red Badge of Courage, Maggie was reissued in 1896 with considerable changes and re-writing. The story is followed by George's Mother.

Condition:

Publisher's printed cloth binding, heavily soiled else a very good copy in a very good slipcase.