Flint Spears; Cowboy Rodeo Contestant

New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1938. First Edition, 1st Printing. Near Fine/Very Good. Will James. [8.5x6in]; xiv, 269 pp., [38], frontispiece color illustration of cowboy on bucking bull by James, 29 illustrations with one double page and others in text, 21 black and white images of rodeo action with commentary; Red-orange linen covers with dark blue ink lettering on front and spine between six ink bands, all edges trimmed; Cream dust jacket with cream lettering in a gray field on front and spine, red bands on spine, color illustration (same as frontispiece) on front, black and white image of bucking horse and rider with description of the book and rodeos on back; Minimal shelf wear to covers, edges or corners with light rubbing, light age toning of text; Some shelf wear to dust jacket with age toning, small chips and closed tears along top and bottom edges, significant darkening of spine and at front and back joints, not price clipped. [Frazier p. 120]. William Roderick James (1892-1942), a western artist and author. Originally from Quebec and relocated to Montana around 1911 under questionable circumstances where he changed his name to James. over the next 10 years he became a cowboy, service in the US Army and developed his artistic skills. He married and settled into writing western related essays and illustrative works for magazines and publishers. As he became more proficient and well-known in the early 1920's, Scribner's editors helped James produce his early books, which were highly praised by reviewers for the authenticity. He went on to write 18 books of fiction and nonfiction. From Don Frazier's, "The Will James Books, A Descriptive Bibliography (1998)", this book was issued without the typical Scribner's 'A' on the copyright page indicating a First Edition, First Printing. "Scribner claimed it to have been an oversight."

This books is about rodeos and the participants. It is a series of short stories with Flint Spears as a central character. Frazier wrote, "Will James knew rodeoing from all sides. He contested in them, put on a few with his friends, wrote news commentaries on them, and acted as a judge in quite a few. These stories give plenty of examples of how rough a game rodeoing is.