HAMMETT, Dashiell "The Maltese Falcon" [Grosset & Dunlap, 1930]

HAMMETT, Dashiell. The Maltese Falcon.

New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1930. Reprinted from the sixth edition. 7.75" x 5.25", 267pp + 11pp publisher's ads. Olive green cloth in facsimile dust jacket. Extremities rubbed, front hinge cracked, and textblock generally toned. Good+.

The Maltese Falcon redefined American crime fiction, establishing the hard-boiled detective novel as a dominant form of the genre. Hammett’s protagonist, Sam Spade, set the template for the tough, morally ambiguous private eye that would influence generations of writers and filmmakers. The novel’s terse prose, cynical tone, and realistic dialogue helped move detective fiction from genteel puzzles to gritty urban realism.