Q & A

E.S. of Pickering, Ontario writes:

I have had this book in my possession for years and I'm not sure where I got it. It might have been from my aunt. It is a First Edition, 1927. It is “My Life as an Explorer” by Roald Amundsen.

The book is in good condition; the pages are perfect, but the cover is a bit soiled and rough at the edges. The signature seems to read A.H. Stahl (not sure who that is) and the copyright reads "Copyright, 1927, by Doubleday, Page & company. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States at the Country Life Press, Garden City, N.Y. First Edition." It is autographed with Heartiest Birthday Wishes, New York, December 17, 1927, R. Amundsen.

Could you tell me if this is valuable, and if so, how much it might be worth?

We asked Dirk Heinze to respond:

Your book My Life as Explorer by Roald Amundsen, the first man to reach the South Pole, is indeed the first edition which was published in 1927 by Double, Day, Page & Co in New York. Unfortunately it does not have the dust jacket that it was issued in, which in most instances would reduce the value drastically. In this case however because you have an inscribed and signed copy by Amundsen himself the lack of dust jacket is of secondary significance. This particular inscription is dated 1927 a year before Amundsen died searching for Nobile and his airship 'Italia' which had vanished on an earlier flight to the Pole. The other inscription by Stahl is probably an anonymous ink inscription of a former owner of this book and I have found no evidence to link Stahl to Amundsen. At present Polar material is quite sought after and your book would sell in the range of 700 to 750 dollar range.