Is My A House in the Country a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First American edition, translated by David Pritchard with Suzanne Jill Levine: Alfred A. Knopf cloth in dust jacket, New York, 1984 (352 pages
• ISBN 0-394-50949-8)
• Translation of 'Casa de campo.' As a Knopf first the copyright page carries the stated 'First American Edition' line (used because the book had already appeared abroad in Spanish) together with the 'This is a Borzoi Book' notice, and the Borzoi colophon appears at the rear

How Alfred A. Knopf, New York marked a first edition

• c.1970s onward (number-line era, added ALONGSIDE the words — it did not replace them): later Knopf firsts also carry a descending numeric printer's key (often with a manufacturing/printer code). A first printing shows th…

Full Alfred A. Knopf, New York first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Verify this is the American true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
6. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

The true first edition is the Spanish 'Casa de campo' (Seix Barral, 1978). The 1984 Knopf is the first American edition; a first UK edition was issued the same year by Allen Lane in light blue paper boards with a gilt-lettered spine and pictorial priced jacket. The two 1984 English editions appear essentially concurrent, so verify priority if exact precedence is needed; the US Knopf is the standard cited English first.P-016944

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Later paperbacks (including the Knopf Aventura paperback) are reprints, not the 1984 cloth first; a genuine Knopf first is confirmed by the 'First American Edition' statement on the copyright page.P-016945

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of A House in the Country a first edition?

A first edition of A House in the Country by José Donoso (trans. David Pritchard with Suzanne Jill Levine) (Alfred A. Knopf, New York) is identified by: First American edition, translated by David Pritchard with Suzanne Jill Levine: Alfred A.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. The true first edition is the Spanish 'Casa de campo' (Seix Barral, 1978).

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

Later paperbacks (including the Knopf Aventura paperback) are reprints, not the 1984 cloth first; a genuine Knopf first is confirmed by the 'First American Edition' statement on the copyright page.

I have a first edition of A House in the Country — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.