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1916, Eyes

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11.  The Mine with the Iron Door 


The Mine With the Iron Door, by Harold Bell Wright, dust jacket The Mine With the Iron Door, by Harold Bell Wright

First Edition

Appleton, 1923, red cloth cover with gold lettering, first printings have (1) on last page of story.  Dust jacket has photos of Wright on back and spine.

Total sales: 424,331

List of editions

Value Guide


Background

This story is set in the Canada del Oro (Canyon of Gold) in the Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson, Arizona. Harold Bell Wright took his title from the name of one of the area's best known "lost mines."  

Collecting

This novel and Helen of the Old House are the most common Appleton title by Harold Bell Wright. All American first editions were published by Appleton, who always included a printing number on the last page of the book. Printing numbers higher than (1) are considered less desirable by collectors than first printings. Reprints were also published by A.L. Burt, Triangle, Ryerson, Hodder & Stoughton, and Thall & Carlsson. 

Total sales: 424,331

Notes for Owners of Harold Bell Wright's Books and Collectibles:

Ryerson, 1923, Canadian first edition.  Identical to American first.

Review of Book by Dr. Joyce Kinkead  Copyright 1979 by Joyce Kinkead.  Used by Permission.

           Wright's 1923 southwestern novel, The Mine with the Iron Door, begins with a customary western motif.  However, Wright subtly writes of Indian protest against white American society.  The theme is not so much West versus East as it is original West versus encroaching civilization.  There is also the usual theme of Anglo West versus Anglo East.  In addition, the novel is a modern version of Chaucer's "The Pardoner's Tale" as it includes the curse of gold theme.  But the novel dwells largely on the Indian's role in contemporary society and the effects of that role.

            The story begins with an excellent description of the Tucson area near the Santa Catalina Mountains in a mesa called the Canyon of Gold.   Continue >>>

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This Harold Bell Wright web site is written and produced by Gerry Chudleigh with the help of many friends.
Copyright © 2000-May, 2011 by Gerry Chudleigh
Last updated 05/26/11