# Is "61 Hours" by Lee Child a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of 61 Hours by Lee Child (Bantam Press, 2010) is identified by: UK Bantam Press hardcover is the true first: confirm the Bantam Press imprint and 2010 dating. The UK Bantam Press (Transworld) hardcover was published in March 2010, about two months ahead of the US Delacorte Press edition in May 2010.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- UK Bantam Press hardcover is the true first: confirm the Bantam Press imprint and 2010 dating
- The US Delacorte printing states 'First Edition' with a number line ending in 1, which marks the US first printing only
- Publisher imprint reads Bantam Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Lee Child |
| Publisher | Bantam Press |
| Year | 2010 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | UK Bantam Press hardcover is the true first: confirm the Bantam Press imprint and 2010… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
UK Bantam Press hardcover is the true first: confirm the Bantam Press imprint and 2010 dating. The US Delacorte printing states 'First Edition' with a number line ending in 1, which marks the US first printing only.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Bantam Press (Transworld) hardcover was published in March 2010, about two months ahead of the US Delacorte Press edition in May 2010. The UK Bantam Press hardcover is the true first edition; the US Delacorte is the first US printing. Fourteenth Reacher novel.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
None significant.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *61 Hours* by Lee Child a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/61-hours
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.