Napoleon Jackson, the Gentleman of the Plush Rocker

1stedn; 12mo Maroon cloth with gilt letters and flowers, green leaves and lines. VG/ndj: [6]+132 pages + 8 sepia illustrations, Frontispiece;  An African-American family saga in the post war South written with "black dialect". Originally from Louisiana, and raised in New Orleans, the author was one of the most successful writers of her time both financially and critically; published in Harpers, Century, Lipponcotts, &c, traveling widely for oral presentations of her work./Stuart was active in her literary career from 1888 until 1917, producing some 75 works. She was known not just for her writing, but also for oral performances of her work. Stuart has been characterized as belonging to the school of "American local color writing that emphasizes regional characteristics in landscape, way of life, and language." Stuart's treatment of blacks forms a significant portion of her corpus and, if potentially troublesome today, "contemporary critics acclaimed her as providing an authentic representation of African Americans." / The cover art is signed with a monogram of DD for Decorative Designers. It is a book that is included in a group of now collectible books called American Decorative Books. The time period means that many of the books used an art nouveau styling, as this one does. The covers are maroon colored cloth with a reverse embossed design (blind stamped) and filled with gold.…