China Red
New York: Published by the Author, [1931].
First edition. Signed by H.T. Tsiang on dedication page, interestingly inscribed "To friend Robert H. Thayer [signed in English and Chinese characters] H.T. Tsiang c/o M. Rosener Troika N.Y. City Feb. 2nd, 1932." Thayer is very likely the lawyer who assisted in the Lindbergh baby kidnapping case that transfixed the world, starting in March 1932; he was also future OSS head William "Wild Bill" Donovan's protege according to Lloyd Gardner's book on the Lindbergh case, The Case that Never Dies. If the "M. Rosener" mentioned in the inscription was Morris "Mickey" Rosner, an intelligence-connected gangster who also pops up in the Lindbergh kidnapping case, this is a very intriguing association copy. Rosner would take Thayer around to various underworld haunts, according to Gardner. Tsiang's mention of a "troika" (a tripartite group) of himself and these two figures is also interesting.
158 pp. Bound in publisher's wraps with yapped edges. Good only with chipping along edges, creasing to spine, hinges of wraps fragile. The self-published debut novel of Chinese-American experimental author, left-wing political activist, and Hollywood actor H.T. Tsiang. A noteworthy work of Asian American fiction.
Price: $1,200.00