The Girl Behind the Keys (Broadview Encore Editions) - Softcover

Gallon, Tom

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1551114739 ISBN 13: 9781551114736

Publisher: Broadview Press, 2005

Synopsis

“As the door was thrust open, I heard, as in a dream, the voice of Neal Larrard―calm and cool as ever―dictating to me; mechanically, my fingers touched the keys, and I began to type. While I did so, I felt that fearful dead thing pressing against my knees, and felt also the muzzle of the revolver hard against my side.”

First published in 1903, The Girl Behind the Keys is a delightful example of early detective fiction in which Bella Thorn, a savvy young typist, foils the nefarious plans of her employer, a confidence man who exploits the hopes and fears infusing the popular imagination. As Arlene Young’s critical introduction demonstrates, the story unites many of the cultural and literary motifs marking the dawn of the twentieth century, when the Victorian era was giving way to modernity.

About this title

About the Author

Arlene Young is an Associate Professor of English at the University of Manitoba. She is the author of Culture, Class and Gender in the Victorian Novel: Gentlemen, Gents and Working Women (Macmillan, 1999) and the editor of the Broadview edition of George Gissing’s The Odd Women (1998).

From the Back Cover

“As the door was thrust open, I heard, as in a dream, the voice of Neal Larrard―calm and cool as ever―dictating to me; mechanically, my fingers touched the keys, and I began to type. While I did so, I felt that fearful dead thing pressing against my knees, and felt also the muzzle of the revolver hard against my side.”

First published in 1903, The Girl Behind the Keys is a delightful example of early detective fiction in which Bella Thorn, a savvy young typist, foils the nefarious plans of her employer, a confidence man who exploits the hopes and fears infusing the popular imagination. As Arlene Young’s critical introduction demonstrates, the story unites many of the cultural and literary motifs marking the dawn of the twentieth century, when the Victorian era was giving way to modernity.

Edition details

• Publisher: Broadview Press
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1551114739
• ISBN 13: 9781551114736
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 140
• Editor: Young Arlene