ERVINE, ST JOHN. — The Wayward Man. (Signed).

London: W.Collins Sons & Co.Ltd, 1927. 1st British edition, 2nd impression. Robert Dunwoody has inherited his father's love of the sea and restless spirit while his mother dreams that he will play a part in their family business. Robert rebels against the world of small shopkeepers to follow the harsh, dangerous life of a sailor. After years away, travelling across the oceans and as a hobo in the United States, Robert returns to Belfast and is trapped into marriage and a shop of his own. Can he free himself to return to the world beyond Belfast's streets and return to the joys of an independent life? The Wayward Man was among the first novels to explore the character, and conflicts, of Belfast. Pp.375/2 (publisher's ads). inscribed by the author "This book belongs to George & Stella Cregan. It was in his father's church in Belfast that Mattie Dunwoody and Andrew Shillington [characters in the novel] were married. St John Ervine. January 24 1928 at Oaklands, Kennilworth." to front free endpaper. occasional light spotting. Blue cloth with red title to front and spine, boards have some speckled bleached spots. G+.