Laurie Huffman's delightful first novel, "A House Behind the MInt" (Doubleday, $5.95), set in San Francisco in the 1870's, is the story of the notorious highwayman Black Bart, who robbed Wells Fargo coaches while living a respectable life as a mining engineer in the fantastic young city where an infinite variety of people came to seek their fortune and a better way of life. Laurie Huffman (above) was born in Oregon, but most of her life and interests have centered in San Francisco where she enjoys exploring the ghost towns of the Gold Rush country. She has drawn extensively on this background in writing her first book.

Photo is dated 1969.

Photo measures 9.25 x 7 inches.