"Kit Kennedy, Country Boy" by S.R. Crockett, illustrated by A.I. Keller, published by Harper & Brothers, New York, First Edition, First Printing with '1899' imprinted on the title page and copyright 1899 by Harper.

Hard boards, original publisher's cloth, black lettering on front board and spine [some surface soiling and wear- especially spine: see photos]; stamp of John Griff Edwards on the front endpaper and 'illustrations' page - [this page has a small repaired crease on blank bottom]; 5" x 7.1/2"; frontispiece and 5 plates on glossy paper [yellowish stains on plates and the pages next to the plates, a few page corner folds, 408 pages, some soiling, very good condition.

The novel follows the history of Kit's parents and of his training into manhood. It is a complex story and gives great detail about Scottish country life and customs.

"It is long and has some Scots dialect, but is a solid, wholesome, wonderful story. Yes...I said wonderful twice in one line! Giving much detail about the storyline here would ruin the slow development to the surprising and satisfying ending. There's even a villain, and a well meaning man who must fight his own demons, and a sweet persecuted lady, and...but you ought to just read the book and meet them all yourself." [private review]

Samuel Rutherford Crockett (1859-1914), who published under the name "S. R. Crockett", was a Scottish novelist. Crockett's breakthrough year occurred in 1894 when T. Fisher Unwin published no fewer than four of his works, "The Raiders", "The Lilac Sunbonnet", "The Play Actress" and "Mad Sir Uchtred of the Hills".

Arthur Ignatius Keller (1867-1924) was a United States painter and illustrator. He took up drawing at the National Academy, New York as a student of Professor Wilmarth. In Munich, he studied painting with Professor Loeffts. Keller worked in oil and watercolor. He won awards including the First Class Medal at the National Academy, Hallgarten composition prize, the Philadelphia Art Club gold medal, Paris Exposition of 1900 silver medal. Two years later he won the Evans water color prize. At the St. Louis Exposition of 1904 he won gold and silver medals. In San Francisco he was awarded the gold medal of the Panama Pacific International Exposition. At that point he turned almost exclusively to being an magazine and book illustrator.

Provenance:

From the library of John Griff Edwards, Portsmouth, Virginia.

John Griff Edwards (1870-1912) belonged to the old established settler family in Virginia. His father and uncles served in the Army of Northern Virginia during the Civil War. The grandfather, LeRoy Griffin Edwards (1804-1866), was the president of the Virginia State Convention of 1864. John's wife, Mrs. J. Griff Edwards founded and led the first of the United Confederate Choirs of America (1907). After that she was elected the 'Commander in Chief of the United Confederate Choirs'. In 1911 she published a volume titled "Echoes From Dixie A Collection of Songs Used in the South."

Note:
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US: Priority (c.2-4 days) ------------- $12.50
Canada: 1st Class (c.2-6 weeks) ---- $26.50
World: 1st Class (c.2-8 weeks) ----- $34.50