The points of issue
Copyright page states First Edition per Atheneum convention. First issue has a bright red top-edge stain (later issues a duller orange stain) and the names of the contributors of the jacket blurbs (including Eudora Welty, Harper Lee, and Stephen Spender) printed in yellow-green ink. First-issue dust jacket carries the original price on the front flap. Author's first novel; won the William Faulkner Award.
Is this the true first?
US (Atheneum, 1962) is the true first; the UK edition (Chatto & Windus, 1962) follows. The complete short novel had appeared in Harper's Magazine shortly before book publication.
Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later issues and book-club copies lack the bright red top-stain and the yellow-green blurb-name ink, and the club issue is blind-stamped with no flap price.
Frequently asked questions
Is my copy of A Long and Happy Life a first edition?
Look for these first-edition points: Copyright page states First Edition per Atheneum convention. First issue has a bright red top-edge stain (later issues a duller orange stain) and the names of the contributors of the jacket blurbs (including Eudora Welty, Harper Lee, and Stephen Spender) printed in yellow-green ink. First-issue dust jacket carries the original price on the front flap. Author's first novel; won the William Faulkner Award.
How do I tell the first printing from a later one?
Check the copyright page for the publisher's first-printing convention and confirm the points above. US (Atheneum, 1962) is the true first; the UK edition (Chatto & Windus, 1962) follows. The complete short novel had appeared in Harper's Magazine shortly before book publication.
Is the book-club edition the same as the first?
Later issues and book-club copies lack the bright red top-stain and the yellow-green blurb-name ink, and the club issue is blind-stamped with no flap price.
I have a first edition of A Long and Happy Life — what should I do?
If you're clearing books, New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup in Albuquerque, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies aren't lost. To sell, see the author's collecting guide. Either way, nothing valuable ends up in a landfill.