How to Determine First Edition Books

Regardless of why you collect books, first editions are always the most sought after and oftten the most valuable. A first edition indicates the first printing of a book. Second and third editions are printed as revisions are made to a book or when demand for the book exceeds the amount printed in the first printing. If you are new to book collecting, identifying first editions can be a bit daunting. A few simple rules will help.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Know where to find the information in the book. "First Edition" is always indicated on the title or copyright page just inside the front of the book.

2. Know what to look for and how the first edition is designated. In its simplest, but unfortunately not always the most reliable form, the words “First Edition” are printed on the copyright page. Newer books printed after the mid 1960s also have a number sequence on the copyright page indicating the printing history of the book. Normally, if a number sequence ends in the number 1 (for example, 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1) it usually means it is a first edition. If the sequence ends in a number 2 or 3 it indicates a second or third printing. Sounds easy enough, except when you find out about all of the exceptions set by individual publishing companies.

3. Become familiar with the way each of the various publishers indicate their first editions. For example, Harcourt uses a sequence line of letters (ending in A for first editions) along with the words First Edition or First American Edition. Scribner uses the letter A to indicate first edition under the copyright date line. Houghton Mifflin, until the late 1950s, signified first editions by putting the publishing date on the title page and then removed the date for subsequent printings. These are just three of the many, many exceptions.

4. Look for the marks or elements that can distinguish a first from later printings known as points of issue or points. A good example of a point of issue is when a book wins an award and the cover has sticker or some way to indicate on the cover the book has won an award. The book could not have won the award before the first printing so if the cover is marked as an award winning novel, then it is obviously not a first edition of the first printing. Often, the publisher or the author will request a cover change in color or design so it is important to know the bibliographic history of books when collecting first editions so that you can correctly identify the book’s points of issue.

5. Get familiar with Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of American (ABAA). Use the "For Collectors Section" on their website (see Resources), which includes sub sections for "Collecting," "Evaluating," "Articles," "FAQs," "Glossary," "Research" and other links.

6. Get involved with several book collecting blogs (see Resources) to network with hundreds of book collectors across the world.

7. Be diligent in your research and confirm that a book is a first edition before spending hundreds and often thousands of dollars for a book.

Tips & Warnings

• When shopping for first editions, the first book you need to invest in is a guide book to correctly identify first editions. A helpful paperback to start with is the "Pocket Guide to the Identification of First Editions" by Bill McBride, 2001.

[tussa]

on 6/12/2009 Excellent article.... thank you!