Is My A Wrinkle in Time (signed/first-printing distinction) a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first is the 1962 Ariel Books edition (Ariel was the children's imprint of Farrar, Straus and Cudahy)
• The first printing states the 1962 date on the copyright page and is bound in quarter cloth over speckled paper boards
• The defining point is the first-state dust jacket: it carries the original printed price on the front flap and does NOT bear the Newbery Medal seal
• The pictorial jacket was designed by Ellen Raskin
• A second-state jacket on the same first-printing sheets adds the gold Newbery Medal seal (the award came in 1963), so the seal alone marks a jacket as second state, not necessarily a later printing

How Ariel Books / Farrar, Straus and Cudahy marked a first edition

• ERA 1 - Farrar, Straus and Company (founding, c.1945/46-1950): No number line and no consistent 'First Edition' statement. Identify a first printing by the stylized interlocked 'FS' publisher's device on the copyright pa…
• ERA 3 - Farrar, Straus and Cudahy (1953-1963): Imprint line reads 'Farrar, Straus and Cudahy' after the 1953 Pellegrini & Cudahy merger. First printings state 'First Printing (year)' or 'First Published (year)' on the co…

Full Ariel Books / Farrar, Straus and Cudahy 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?

The US Ariel Books / Farrar, Straus and Cudahy 1962 edition is the true first; the book won the 1963 Newbery Medal. The base title may already be in the index; this entry documents the finer jacket-state and seal points rather than duplicating the title.P-020451

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Book-club editions typically lack the printed jacket price, add the Newbery seal, carry a blind-stamp on the rear board, and frequently show the later 'Farrar, Straus & Giroux' imprint rather than the original 'Farrar, Straus and Cudahy.'P-020452

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of A Wrinkle in Time (signed/first-printing distinction) a first edition?

A first edition of A Wrinkle in Time (signed/first-printing distinction) by Madeleine L'Engle (Ariel Books / Farrar, Straus and Cudahy) is identified by: The true first is the 1962 Ariel Books edition (Ariel was the children's imprint of Farrar, Straus and Cudahy).

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 US Ariel Books / Farrar, Straus and Cudahy 1962 edition is the true first; the book won the 1963 Newbery Medal.

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

Book-club editions typically lack the printed jacket price, add the Newbery seal, carry a blind-stamp on the rear board, and frequently show the later 'Farrar, Straus & Giroux' imprint rather than the original 'Farrar, Straus and Cudahy.'

I have a first edition of A Wrinkle in Time (signed/first-printing distinction) — 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.