Harold Schechter

Hardcover with dustjacket, in excellent condition except the pages are starting to yellow around the edges due to age/paper quality.

Hardcover (1 to 2 lbs)

Texas

The Maniac, the Model, and the Murder That Shook the Nation

2015 Edgar Award Nominee



Beekman Place, once one of the most exclusive addresses in Manhattan, had a curious way of making it into the tabloids in the 1930s: "SKYSCRAPER SLAYER," "BEAUTY SLAIN IN BATHTUB" read the headlines. On Easter Sunday in 1937, the discovery of a grisly triple homicide at Beekman Place would rock the neighborhood yet again--and enthrall the nation. The young man who committed the murders would come to be known in the annals of American crime as the Mad Sculptor.

 

Caught up in the Easter Sunday slayings was a bizarre and sensationalistic cast of characters, seemingly cooked up in a tabloid editor's overheated imagination. The charismatic perpetrator, Robert Irwin, was a brilliant young sculptor who had studied with some of the masters of the era. But with his genius also came a deeply disturbed psyche; Irwin was obsessed with sexual self-mutilation and was frequently overcome by outbursts of violent rage.

 

Irwin's primary victim, Veronica Gedeon, was a figure from the world of pulp fantasy--a stunning photographer's model whose scandalous seminude pinups would titillate the public for weeks after her death. Irwin's defense attorney, Samuel Leibowitz, was a courtroom celebrity with an unmatched record of acquittals and clients ranging from Al Capone to the Scottsboro Boys. And Dr. Fredric Wertham, psychiatrist and forensic scientist, befriended Irwin years before the murders and had predicted them in a public lecture months before the crime.

 

Based on extensive research and archival records,The Mad Sculptor recounts the chilling story of the Easter Sunday murders--a case that sparked a nationwide manhunt and endures as one of the most engrossing American crime dramas of the twentieth century. Harold Schechter's masterful prose evokes the faded glory of post-depression New York and the singular madness of a brilliant mind turned against itself. It will keep you riveted until the very last page.

The Mad Sculptor

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Merriam-Webster Editors

Judging by the bindings and clean Interiors I don't think these books were ever used however they have been stored for many years in dusty conditions, the tops of the books have some soiling/spotting, see photo, but the interior pages are clean. The outer box has some wear but is intact. Great for someone who just wants to use these books and isn't concerned too much about appearances. Three Mass Market sized paperbacks, dictionary, thesaurus, vocabulary builder, in box set.

Heavy Paperback (2 to 4 lbs)

Dictionary, Thesaurus, Vocabulary Builder 

Merriam-Webster's Everyday Language Reference Set contains:
1 X The Merriam-Webster Dictionary 9780877799306
1 X The Merriam-Webster Thesaurus 9780877798507
1 X Merriam-Webster Vocabulary Builder 9780877798552


Merriam-Webster's Everyday Language Reference Set

4c2658ee-5214-47c1-9915-d37ee7cec8e5-1

Greg King

Penny Wilson

Advance reader copy, this is a trade paperback that was issued before the release of the hardcover for review purposes, it contains the same text as the hardcover but it is a trade paperback and clearly states Advance reader copy on the cover. It is in good condition except near the bottom the laminate is peeling off the front cover. Great for someone who just wants to read a cheap copy of the book.

Leopold and Loeb and the Truth Behind the Murder That Rocked 1920s America

Greg King and Penny Wilson turn the original crime of the century on its head in this riveting exploration of the murder trial of Leopold & Loeb, Nothing but the Night...

Nothing but the Night ADVANCE READER COPY 

adce85a5-5bb2-4078-a0e1-025fae68c832-1

Steven Biel

Trade paperback in excellent condition, bought new and read once, just a touch of edge/handling wear.

Light Paperback (1 lb or less)

A Life of America's Most Famous Painting

A study of the origins and multiple meanings of Grant Wood's portrait of the pitchfork-holding Iowa farming couple documents how the piece has represented midwestern Puritanism, hard-working endurance, and the often-parodied American heartland throughout different periods in history. Reprint.

American Gothic

f80ddc4f-ea5f-4ebd-ad7b-7c3440833f0f-0

Funeral Home presentation Bible with entries for the Whitworth family from Georgia. In good condition except the front hinge looks a little weak, see photo. Has been in storage for several years and not been handled regularly.

Huge Hardcover (6 to 8 lbs)

Heirloom Holy Bible King James Edition 1988 Devore & Sons with Whitworth family genealogy

Margaret Leslie Davis

Trade paperback, in very good condition except bottom right corner is a little bent and cover curls up there, see third photo. Completely readable, and a very interesting book, pages are clean and tight.

The Astounding Story of One Book's Five-Hundred-Year Odyssey

“A lively tale of historical innovation, the thrill of the bibliophile’s hunt, greed and betrayal.” – The New York Times Book Review "An addictive and engaging look at the ‘competitive, catty and slightly angst-ridden’ heart of the world of book collecting.” - The Houston Chronicle The never-before-told story of one extremely rare copy of the Gutenberg Bible, and its impact on the lives of the fanatical few who were lucky enough to own it. For rare-book collectors, an original copy of the Gutenberg Bible--of which there are fewer than 50 in existence--represents the ultimate prize. Here, Margaret Leslie Davis recounts five centuries in the life of one copy, from its creation by Johannes Gutenberg, through the hands of monks, an earl, the Worcestershire sauce king, and a nuclear physicist to its ultimate resting place, in a steel vault in Tokyo. Estelle Doheny, the first woman collector to add the book to her library and its last private owner, tipped the Bible onto a trajectory that forever changed our understanding of the first mechanically printed book. The Lost Gutenberg draws readers into this incredible saga, immersing them in the lust for beauty, prestige, and knowledge that this rarest of books sparked in its owners. Exploring books as objects of obsession across centuries, this is a must-read for history buffs, book collectors, seekers of hidden treasures, and anyone who has ever craved a remarkable book--and its untold stories.

The Lost Gutenberg

e7e588eb-b71b-424d-906e-43f3079c2509-1

Trade paperback in excellent condition. Bought new, read once.

Uncommonly Tidy Poltergeists

David Soren

Hardcover with glossy pictorial cover in excellent condition.

The Magic and the Mystery

Vera-Ellen

36db0d46-1b13-4dff-ad47-a08056c78ff0-0

Chris Skidmore

Trade paperback, former library book with usual markings but otherwise in good condition, interior clean, binding fine. Minor wear from reading and handling.

Elizabeth I and the Dark Scandal That Rocked the Throne

In the tradition of Alison Weir's New York Times bestselling Mary, Queen of Scots and the Murder of Lord Darnley, comes the most sensational crime story of Tudor England.

On the morning of September 8, 1560, at the isolated manor of Cunmor place, the body of a young woman was found at the bottom of a staircase, her neck broken. But this was no ordinary death. Amy Robsart was the wife of Elizabeth I's great favorite, Robert Dudley, the man who many believed she would marry, were he free. Immediately people suspected foul play and Elizabeth's own reputation was in danger of serious damage. Many felt she might even lose her throne. An inquest was begun, witnesses called, and ultimately a verdict of death by accident was reached. But the mystery refused to die and cast a long shadow over Elizabeth's reign.

Using recently discovered forensic evidence from the original investigation, Skidmore is able to put an end to centuries of speculation as to the true causes of Robsart's death. This is the story of a treacherous period in Elizabeth's life: a tale of love, death, and tragedy, exploring the dramatic early life of England's Virgin Queen.

Death and the Virgin Queen

2925e0a1-16c2-4bc2-9428-4d73f30b54a8-1

Allan R. Ellenberger

Kevin Brownlow

Paperback (1 to 2 lbs)

A Biography of the Silent Film Idol, 1899-1968; with a Filmography

Ramon Novarro was Ben-Hur to moviegoers long before Charlton Heston. The 1926 film made Novarro--known as "Ravishing Ramon"--one of Hollywood's most beloved silent film idols. His bright and varied career, spanning silents, talkies, the concert stage, theater, and television, came to a dark conclusion with his murder in 1968. This comprehensive work details both the private and public aspects of Novarro's life to return him to his rightful place in film history. Includes a complete filmography and numerous photos.

Ramon Novarro

97fd219d-e0bc-41bd-8659-c12e98a47159-0

Gaby Wood

Good reading copy, minor wear from reading and handling, cover curl, see second photo. Fascinating story about the sad and short life of a dwarf in the 1800s.

The story of the dwarf Caroline Crachami

The Smallest of All Persons Mentioned in the Records of Littleness

2c8ae616-6883-4596-b732-4a6da3aaff0f-0

M. J. Trow

Hardcover with dustjacket in excellent condition, bought new and read once. The only flaw is a small wrinkle along the top edge of the dustjacket.
If you're interested in this book, please check my listings I also have other similar books by this author.

A Forensic Investigation in WW2 Britain

The Wigwam Murder

76a2e3fc-9dc6-45b3-ba57-2dca44318a43-0

Hardcover with dustjacket in excellent condition, bought new and read once.
If you're interested in this book, please check my listings I also have other similar books by this author.

Nazi Spies and Witchcraft in Wartime Britain

Astonishingly, The Hagley Wood Murder is the first book solely on the subject (other than a selection of privately printed/self published offerings) ever written on this murder, which too place eighty years ago. In April 1943, four teenaged boys discovered a corpse stuffed into the bole of a wych elm in a wood in the industrial Midlands. The body was merely bones and had been in the tree for up to two years. The pathologist determined that she was female, probably in her thirties, had given birth and was just under five feet tall. The cause of death was probably suffocation. Six months after the discovery, mysterious messages began to appear on walls in the area, variants of 'Who Put Bella Down the Wych Elm - Hagley Wood'. And the name Bella has stuck ever since. Local newspapers, then the national press, took up the story and ran with it, but not until 1968 was there a book on the case - Donald McCormick's Murder by Witchcraft - and that, like others that followed, tied Bella in with another supposedly occult murder, that of Charles Walton on Meon Hill in 1945. Any unsolved murder brings out the oddballs - the police files, only recently released, are full of them - and the nonsense still continues. The online versions are woeful - inaccuracy piled on supposition, laced with fiction. It did not help that a professional occultist, Dr Margaret Murray, expressed her belief, as early as 1953, that witchcraft was involved in Bella's murder. And ill-informed nonsense has been cobbled together to 'prove' that Dr Murray was right. McCormick's own involvement was in espionage and his book, slavishly copied by later privately printed efforts, have followed this tack too. It was wartime, so the anonymous woman in the wych elm had to be a spy, parachuted in by the Abwehr, the Nazi secret service. The Hagley Wood Murder is the first book to unravel the fiction of McCormick and others. It names Bella and her probable murderer. And if the conclusion is less over-the-top than the fabrications referred to above, it is still an intriguing tale of the world's oldest profession and the world's oldest crime!

The Hagley Wood Murder

cf207454-785a-4083-afb0-d52ea993efa0-0

Hardcover with dustjacket. Minor wear from reading and handling. Pages clean and tight but light soiling on the outer edges, visible only from the outside when the book is closed. Remainder mark on bottom edge.

Nijinsky The Definitive Biography  by his wife Romola Nijinsky 

Erika Marks

Two trade paperbacks, good reading condition, Pages clean and tight but yellowing due to age/paper quality, minor overall reading and handling wear, spine creases, reminder marks, remains of price stickers. Just average used books that have been read a few times but still have several reads left in them.

This romance novel-by-the-sea is a perfect beach read. As students, Liv, Sam and Whit bonded while investigating the Patriot, a schooner that disappeared in 1812 with Aaron Burr's daughter Theodosia aboard. But as the mysterious ship drew them together, love would bring them even closer - and ultimately tear them apart.

Lot of 2 Books by Erika Marks The Last Treasure & The Mermaid Collector 

00719670-26e4-4cf9-ad46-f54b6f5bf6c5-1

Former library book with usual markings, stamps and stickers. Pages clean and tight. Minor reading and handling wear.

Treasure Ship The Legend and Legacy of the S.S. Brother Jonathan

e66eb0fb-bdce-46ea-84f8-9063d072c400-0

Michaela Grey

Both books are an excellent condition except the bottom corners are a little bit bent. They were bought new and read only once each.

Coffee Cake: Book One Bran Kendrick never expected to fall in love. He's asexual, after all. What chance does he have of finding someone who'll see past that? So when Malachi Warren catches his eye, Bran tells himself his crush will pass. Malachi disagrees. He has been attracted to Bran for some time, something he is delighted to find Bran reciprocating. They begin to date and feel their way through an intimate relationship that meets both their needs. Suddenly Bran finds himself juggling a new boyfriend, a demanding job, and a college degree he's not sure he wants, but he couldn't be happier-until a series of seemingly random accidents befall Malachi. When they escalate, Bran realizes someone is trying to take away the best thing that ever happened to him, and he must scramble to keep Malachi safe while they search for the would-be killer.

Lot of 2 Books Coffee Cake & Beignets 

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1941 hardcover with dustjacket. Spine badly faded. Front hinge cracked but if handled carefully probably has a few more read. Corners bumped/bent. Interior clean and except for the front hinge the binding appears good. Historical novel about Count Axel Fersen and Marie Antoinette. 

Kings' Masque novel about Count Fersen and Marie Antoinette 

1934 historical  novel about Marie Antoinette  and her romance with Count Axel Fersen. Hardcover with dust jacket, withdrawn library books with usual markings, stamps, stickers. There is a tear on the first page, which is blank except for some library markings. Overall, given its age, in good reading copy condition.

The Merry Queen A Historical Narrative of the Happy and Tragic Life of Marie Antoinette

Mark A. Roeder

Two paperbacks in average used book condition, some minor wear, bent/curling corners.

Lot of 2 Books A Better Place & Disastrous Dates and Dream Boys

8d97da14-7c11-4891-8280-52ae49935d28-1

Trade paperback, read once, gently, in excellent condition.

Retrying Leopold and Loeb A Neuropsychological Perspective 

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Like new trade paperback signed by author on title page. A novel about Empress Josephine and her cousin Aimee, who was abducted and sold into a Turkish harem.

Two Empresses by Brandy Purdy Signed by Author 

a6b3fffb-02ef-4dbc-97fe-1b5ff55a3618-0

Gently read trade paperback, Pages clean and tight, minor reading/handling wear. Please note this is the third book in a trilogy that was published only in England as far as I know, and no, I'm sorry I don't have the other books in the series. The back cover describes it as "the taboo theme of a forbidden romance between two brothers and the author's love affair with the great outdoors and wilderness areas of America." Set in 1968.

Browse by categories

Harold Schechter

The Mad Sculptor

Merriam-Webster Editors

Merriam-Webster's Everyday Language Reference Set

Greg King; Penny Wilson

Nothing but the Night ADVANCE READER COPY

Steven Biel

American Gothic

Master Reference Edition

Heirloom Holy Bible King James Edition 1988 Devore & Sons with Whitworth family genealogy

Margaret Leslie Davis

The Lost Gutenberg

Angel Martinez

Uncommonly Tidy Poltergeists

David Soren

Vera-Ellen

Chris Skidmore

Death and the Virgin Queen

Allan R. Ellenberger; Kevin Brownlow

Ramon Novarro

Gaby Wood

The Smallest of All Persons Mentioned in the Records of Littleness

M. J. Trow

The Wigwam Murder

M. J. Trow

The Hagley Wood Murder

Romola Nijinsky

Nijinsky The Definitive Biography by his wife Romola Nijinsky

Erika Marks

Lot of 2 Books by Erika Marks The Last Treasure & The Mermaid Collector

Dennis M. Powers

Treasure Ship The Legend and Legacy of the S.S. Brother Jonathan

Michaela Grey

Lot of 2 Books Coffee Cake & Beignets

Evan John

Kings' Masque novel about Count Fersen and Marie Antoinette

Pierre Nezelof

The Merry Queen A Historical Narrative of the Happy and Tragic Life of Marie Antoinette

Mark A. Roeder

Lot of 2 Books A Better Place & Disastrous Dates and Dream Boys

David L. Shapiro, Charles Golden, Sara Ferguson

Retrying Leopold and Loeb A Neuropsychological Perspective

Brandy Purdy

Two Empresses by Brandy Purdy Signed by Author

Jacobus Rawley

Gone to Look for America

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