RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️

$185.00
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️
RICKSHAW BOY (First American Edition, Illustrated by Baldridge, 1945) 🇨🇳📚🖼️

his is the First American Edition, First Printing of Lau Shaw's (Lao She) seminal novel, Rickshaw Boy, published during the final year of World War II.

The volume is classified as a highly desirable collector's piece due to its verifiable first edition status and the inclusion of the rare original dust jacket.

Its value is secured by the original, unique illustrations by Cyrus LeRoy Baldridge and the book's significant place in the history of modern Chinese literature.

2. About the Book 📖✍️✨

  • Title: Rickshaw Boy

  • Author: Lau Shaw (Lao She, 1899–1966)

  • Translator: Evan King (Robert S. Ward)

  • Publisher: Reynal & Hitchcock, New York

  • Date: 1945

  • Edition/Printing: First American Edition, First Printing (Confirmed by date and copyright page)

  • Contents: The novel is a masterpiece of social realism, detailing the tragic life of a rickshaw puller named Xiangzi in 1920s Peking (Beijing). The translation is historically notable for its altered, sanitized ending.

  • Illustrations: Features original sketches and striking color endpapers by the noted American artist Cyrus LeRoy Baldridge, whose work focused extensively on Asia.

3. Key Features & Provenance 🔑📚🖼️

  • Dust Jacket: Retains the original, unclipped dust jacket, featuring a striking red sketch of the main character.

  • Endpapers: Illustrated with a colorful, busy street scene by Baldridge, highlighting the chaos and vibrancy of pre-Communist Peking.

  • Provenance: Contains an early, attractive "Ex Libris" bookplate for "Mr. & Mrs. C. Lester King", documenting its initial ownership history.

  • Historical Context: Published the year World War II ended, introducing a major work of Chinese literature to a mainstream American audience during a period of shifting global relations.

4. Condition 🔎📚✨ The physical condition has been assessed directly from the provided high-resolution photography.

  • Book (Binding): Very Good Minus (VG-). The yellow cloth binding is square with light fading and minimal wear to the corners and spine edges. The pages are clean with no internal marks except for the bookplate.

  • Dust Jacket: Good Plus (G+). The Dust Jacket is complete and unclipped (full collector value preserved), but shows visible wear. There is chipping and creasing along the top and bottom edges, especially at the spine ends, and moderate shelf wear.

  • Interior: Clean and tight. The front endpaper features a neat, period Ex Libris bookplate

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