Is My Copy of A Street in Bronzeville a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Harper & Brothers, New York, 1945; published 18 August 1945
• Brooks's first book
• Collation vi, 57, [1] pp. The first printing carries "FIRST EDITION" on the copyright page together with Harper's two-letter printing code, in which the second letter denotes the year: U = 1945
• Note that the Harper code records the month and year the sheets were printed, which may precede the publication date, so the month letter varies; a code whose year letter is other than U indicates a later printing
• Bound in publisher's black cloth, decoratively stamped and lettered in gilt (dealers describe the stamping variously as brown or as orange)
• Jacket states: the first-state jacket carries a "Buy War Bonds" notice and the jacket number "No. 2296" on the rear panel; the second-state jacket omits the War Bonds notice and carries "No. 2322" on the rear panel

How Harper & Brothers, New York marked a first edition

• 1912-1949: month/year letter code on copyright page. Month: A=Jan, B=Feb, C=Mar, D=Apr, E=May, F=Jun, G=Jul, H=Aug, I=Sep, K=Oct, L=Nov, M=Dec (J skipped).
• From 1922: also began printing 'First Edition' on the copyright page in addition to the code.

Full Harper & Brothers, 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 US 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?

US only. Harper & Brothers, New York, 1945 is the sole first edition of Brooks's debut; no simultaneous or precedent British edition is recorded, and there is no original-language question. Later Harper and Harper & Row printings, and the collected/selected volumes that reprint the Bronzeville sequence, are "first thus" at best — the sequence's reappearance inside a later collection is not a first edition of this title.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club edition is documented for this title — a small first trade printing of poetry. The documented later-issue tells are the copyright page (loss of the "FIRST EDITION" statement, or a Harper code whose year letter is later than U) and the second-state jacket ("No. 2322" on the rear panel, no War Bonds notice).P-038462

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of A Street in Bronzeville a first edition?

A first edition of A Street in Bronzeville by Gwendolyn Brooks (Harper & Brothers, New York) is identified by: Harper & Brothers, New York, 1945; published 18 August 1945; Brooks's first book.

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. US only.

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

No book-club edition is documented for this title — a small first trade printing of poetry. The documented later-issue tells are the copyright page (loss of the "FIRST EDITION" statement, or a Harper code whose year letter is later than U) and the second-state jacket ("No. 2322" on the rear panel, no War Bonds notice).

I have a first edition of A Street in Bronzeville — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

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.