The Case of the Shoplifter's Shoe by Erle Stanley Gardner 1945 Tower Books Second Printing Hardcover with Dust Jacket

The Case of the Shoplifter's Shoe by Erle Stanley Gardner is a 1945 Tower Books Edition hardcover published by The World Publishing Company with its illustrated dust jacket.

The 204 pages are yellowed with age but remain clean and easy to read, while the dust jacket shows shelf wear, edge rubbing, and a noticeable piece of paper missing at the top of the spine.

This Perry Mason mystery brings Gardner's lawyer detective into a case involving shoplifting, stolen jewels, murder, and the complications that follow when appearances point in the wrong direction.

Details

• Item: Vintage mystery hardcover with dust jacket
• Title: The Case of the Shoplifter's Shoe
• Author: Erle Stanley Gardner
• Publisher: The World Publishing Company, Cleveland and New York, by arrangement with William Morrow & Company
• Publication Year: 1945
• Edition and Printing: Tower Books Edition, second printing December 1945
• Format and Binding: Hardcover, dark blue cloth boards with red page edges
• Dust Jacket: Present, illustrated, jacket design by Leo Manso
• Pages: 204
• Genre: Mystery and detective fiction
• Language: English
• ISBN: No ISBN
• Dimensions: 8 x 6 x 0.75 inches

Condition Grade: Good

Positives

• Graded Good: This copy is complete and readable, with its original style dust jacket still present and clear signs of age and use.
• The 204 pages remain clean and easy to read despite overall age toning.
• The dark blue cloth boards retain strong color, and the front board carries the Tower Mystery horse emblem.
• The copyright page clearly identifies this as the Tower Books Edition, second printing from December 1945.
• The jacket retains its bold black, white, yellow, and red cover design, including the shoe and jewel artwork.
• The back jacket advertisement for Tower Books remains readable and gives the copy additional period detail.

Issues / Wear

• The pages and text block are noticeably yellowed from age.
• A piece of the dust jacket is missing at the top of the spine.
• The jacket shows rubbing and wear along the spine, edges, and corners.
• Small chips, creases, and surface wear are visible around the jacket edges.
• The spine area shows heavier wear than the front and back panels.

Condition Grade Key

• Near Fine: Close to new. Any flaw is small and named above.
• Very Good: Light use. Every flaw is named above, and none of them get in the way of reading or display.
• Good: Complete and usable, with clear signs of use. Every flaw is named above.
• Fair: Heavy wear or damage, named above. A reading or working copy, not a display piece.

Collector's Notes

The Case of the Shoplifter's Shoe first appeared as part of Erle Stanley Gardner's long running Perry Mason mystery series, which paired courtroom work with fast moving detective plots and became one of the best known American mystery series of the twentieth century.

This copy suits a Perry Mason reader, an Erle Stanley Gardner collector, or someone building a shelf of mid century mystery and detective hardcovers.

The copyright page gives unusually useful identification for this copy: Tower Books Edition, first printing July 1945, followed by this second printing in December 1945. The surviving Leo Manso dust jacket keeps the book visually tied to that period.

This is an older reading copy with the wear plainly visible, but the combination of a dated printing statement, original jacket, and clean readable pages gives it plenty of character on the shelf.

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Disclaimer

All items are vintage and may show signs of age, wear, or use consistent with their history. Photos show the exact condition of each piece, please review them carefully, as they are part of the description.

Care and Handling

Handle with clean, dry hands. Store upright, out of direct sunlight, at about 68°F and 40 to 50% relative humidity. Avoid damp areas and extreme temperature swings.