---
product_id: 21923937
title: "Woman with a Blue Pencil"
brand: "seventh street books"
price: "£17.54"
currency: GBP
in_stock: true
category: "Paperback"
url: https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/21923937-woman-with-a-blue-pencil
store_origin: GB
region: United Kingdom
---

# Woman with a Blue Pencil

**Brand:** seventh street books
**Price:** £17.54
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** Woman with a Blue Pencil by seventh street books
- **How much does it cost?** £17.54 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.co.uk](https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/21923937-woman-with-a-blue-pencil)

## Best For

- seventh street books enthusiasts

## Why This Product

- Trusted seventh street books brand quality
- Free international shipping included
- Worldwide delivery with tracking
- 15-day hassle-free returns

## Description

“Woman with a Blue Pencil is a brilliantly structured labyrinth of a novel—something of an enigma wrapped in a mystery, postmodernist in its experimental bravado and yet satisfyingly well-grounded in the Los Angeles of its World War II era. Gordon McAlpine has imagined a totally unique work of ‘mystery’ fiction—one that Kafka, Borges, and Nabokov, as well as Dashiell Hammett, would have appreciated.” —JOYCE CAROL OATESWhat becomes of a character cut from a writer’s working manuscript?     On the eve of Pearl Harbor, Sam Sumida, a Japanese-American academic, has been thrust into the role of amateur P.I., investigating his wife’s murder, which has been largely ignored by the LAPD.  Grief stricken by her loss, disoriented by his ill-prepared change of occupation, the worst is yet to come, Sam discovers that, inexplicably, he has become not only unrecognizable to his former acquaintances but that all signs of his existence (including even the murder he’s investigating) have been erased. Unaware that he is a discarded, fictional creation, he resumes his investigation in a world now characterized not only by his own sense of isolation but by wartime fear.  Meantime, Sam’s story is interspersed with chapters from a pulp spy novel that features an L.A.-based Korean P.I. with jingoistic and anti-Japanese, post December 7th attitudes – the revised, politically and commercially viable character for whom Sumida has been excised.  Behind it all is the ambitious, 20-year-old Nisei author who has made the changes, despite the relocation of himself and his family to a Japanese internment camp.  And, looming above, is his book editor in New York, who serves as both muse and manipulator to the young author—the woman with the blue pencil, a new kind of femme fatale.

## Features

- Seventh Street Books

## Images

![Woman with a Blue Pencil - Image 1](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51w7ceXyNYL.jpg)
![Woman with a Blue Pencil - Image 2](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51rHCfiV%2BJL.jpg)
![Woman with a Blue Pencil - Image 3](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/3144Q5%2Bl%2BAL.jpg)

---

## Why Shop on Desertcart?

- 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016
- 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories
- 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price
- 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members)
- 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection
- ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews

**Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/21923937-woman-with-a-blue-pencil](https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/21923937-woman-with-a-blue-pencil)

---

*Product available on Desertcart United Kingdom*
*Store origin: GB*
*Last updated: 2026-06-09*