The "Oblong" Pocket Book

Pocket Book 259, Halfway House, by Ellery Queen, was a regular, "small mass market" sized paperback with a rather simple cover illustration. The top picture at the left is of a First Printing that I own.

But there was a variant printing that is truly unique in the publishing world. It is the only book (that I have found) that hinges at the BOTTOM of the covers. The interior, however, is presented in a double-column HORIZONTAL format, like an Armed Services Edition.

This was definitely NOT intended for use as an ASE, however. Armed Services Editions came in two sizes. This book is the same size as the "regular" Pocket Book printing, making it smaller than the large ASE volumes, but larger than the small ASE books.

The title verso page indicates it is a First Printing. This isn't really surprising. Look elsewhere in the "BookScans Oddities Section" to see numerous cases where Pocket Book changed covers and stated that both were First Printings.

As you might guess, "The Oblong Pocket Book" is rare and pretty valuable.

Many thanks to Brian Anderson, who told me where I could obtain this copy to study.