What's So Special About a First Edition?

Collectors of baseball cards know that an original Mickey Mantle rookie card is worth thousands of dollars more than a replica produced decades after the first production of the card. Book collection works in exactly the same fashion. In fact, many collectors will only seek and purchase first edition books. The idea of obtaining one of the first of only a thousand or potentially fewer of a work of literature from the 18th century is highly exciting. If you could find such a book you would be able to turn the pages of a legitimate article of literature history. Regardless of sappy intrigue for those easily excited by such a possibility, the hard reality of the book collecting industry is that a first edition book is much more valuable than any other edition.

What Exactly is an Edition?

Ok, so a first edition is important, but what exactly is an edition? The word "edition" almost always refers to a printing run of a book. An edition can have multiple printings, but each of these printing uses the same text and the same typeface. If an edition is printed one hundred times because the book's popularity demands that many reprints, but each printing is exactly the same, then each printing is part of the same edition. If a font is changed, a cover altered, the text edited, lengthened, or any of numerous changes that can happen to a book, then the edition also changes.

The term can, however, be slightly confusing. While the original run of a book is always the first edition, other publishers sometimes obtain the rights to publish a book (this phenomenon occurs often for book clubs) and then print the book as a first edition for that publisher. Sometimes a book club version of a novel will be noted as a "first edition." Technically, this label might be correct, but to the book historian this practice is completely invalid and often viewed as disingenuous. For this reason being able to identify true first editions becomes extremely important.

Some Methods for Identification of a First Edition

Several notations are common enough to be thought universal in the publishing industry. If you can learn these notations, the identification of a first edition book will be much easier.

"First Edition"

Some publishers will mark their books so clearly as first edition that it would be hard to misidentify the book: they simply state "first edition." If the publisher has printed "first edition" at the front of the book, your work is done. Some other variations include "first printing" or "first impression." Pay heed, however, to make sure you do not hold a book club version. Check with the bibliography of the author to note when it was originally published, as book clubs often print books in the years following the original publication date.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Other than the numerals of our counting system, this string of digits offers a great deal of information about a book's edition. Many times a publisher will include these numbers at the start of a book. The cardinal rule regarding this method of identification is that the lowest number present corresponds to the edition of printing. Therefore, if the number-string in the heading above is in your book, you most likely have a first edition. Thusly, 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 would indicate a second edition book.

Some publishers vary the order of the numbers. Often they might begin with 9 and count down to the edition number. 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 would indicate a first edition. Sometimes publishers scramble the numbers, but the lowest number will always be the edition, no matter where it appears in the string.

Another variation might be a substitution of letters for numbers. Seeing the letter "A" on your letter-line would alert you that your book is the first edition. For example, A B C D E F G H I means your book is first edition. If "B" is the "lowest" letter present on the letter-line, the book is a second edition.

First Published...

Infrequently publishers will eschew either of the former methods. If they do, sometimes they merely state that a book was first published in a specific year. If a book offers multiple dates of publish, the tome is not a first edition. If only one date exists in a book, it is very likely a first edition. However, like the "first edition" rule above, consulting a bibliography to make sure the copy was actually printed in the year of first publication is essential. This method is often accurate, but requires the greatest amount of verification.

I Cannot Place My Book by These Methods, Now What?

Some publishers do not use any of the above methods to distinguish their books. The older a book is, the more likely it is that it will contain little information to help you place its edition. If you come across a book that has no date and no further information it is time for you to become a researcher. If a date exists, an author's bibliography is the first place to start. If no date is printed, you might need to consult one of multiple reference guides that exist with information and often photographs of early edition books. Another great tool that has erupted recently is, of course, the internet. Often you can discover information about the printing of your book simply by searching the internet for the specific title or the publishing history of that title. Another good way to go about dating a book is to research the publishing company. Various websites and books exist that detail the histories of individual publishing houses. Sometimes you can get very lucky and see a photograph of a copy of your book; other times you might simply come across a list of titles published with dates. Research is often the method by which you can be the most sure about the edition of your book. Even if you are fairly certain you have a first edition, research can often solidify your knowledge.

First Printings

Thus far we have discussed the first edition of books. When we defined "edition" we noted that multiple printings might occur in one edition. This fact allows for an even smaller set of a book's publication to become even more valuable than a mere first edition. The absolutely most valuable copy of a book is a first printing of a first edition. Fret not, second, third, and every printing of a first edition thereafter is highly sought, but the first printing means that the book was never seen in print before that copy. Almost universally, a publisher will note "first printing" along with "first edition." Again, research is your best friend when it comes to making sure you have a first printing.

Become a Book Hunter

First printings are the prestigious members of the first edition club, but remember any first edition is likely to be valuable. Hard cover books are, usually, more desired than paperbacks. So the next time you discover a dusty, maybe yellowed, book, you will be armed with the knowledge to identify its edition. If it is a first edition, snatch it and treasure it for the piece of history that it is (or, if you must, sell it for thousands of dollars). Happy book hunting!