THE BOUNTY HUNTERS.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1954. First edition of his first book -- the scarce hard cover issue, one of only 1,000 copies. Issued simultaneously with the Ballantine paperback (both are copyrighted 1953 but were issued in 1954). Leonard is best known for his crime fiction and suspense thrillers -- many of which have been adapted into motion pictures -- but his earliest novels were Westerns. Charged with bringing in an old Apache war chief, our hero encounters ruthless bounty hunters paid per Indian scalp who have expanded their bloody business to include poor Mexican farmers living just south of the Arizona territory border. Very good to near fine with the spine ends a little shelf worn and pushed in; in good to very good dust jacket with spine fading, overall light soiling, and professional repair (tape removed and a few chips filled in). SCARCE HARD COVER ISSUE OF HIS FIRST BOOK.
Item #54586
Price: $1,250.00