# Is "Agents and Patients" by Anthony Powell a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Agents and Patients by Anthony Powell (Gerald Duckworth, 1936) is identified by: First printing, London: Gerald Duckworth, 1936, in publisher's red cloth with gilt lettering to the spine, octavo. London: Duckworth, 1936 is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing, London: Gerald Duckworth, 1936, in publisher's red cloth with gilt lettering to the spine, octavo
- Powell's fourth novel and the last of his four pre-war Duckworth novels
- The first-issue dust jacket is the pictorial jacket designed by Misha Black; a correct first is identified by the Duckworth 1936 imprint together with that jacket, which should retain its printed price
- Publisher imprint reads Gerald Duckworth
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Anthony Powell |
| Publisher | Gerald Duckworth |
| Year | 1936 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing, London: Gerald Duckworth, 1936, in publisher's red cloth with gilt lettering to the spine, octavo |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First printing, London: Gerald Duckworth, 1936, in publisher's red cloth with gilt lettering to the spine, octavo. Powell's fourth novel and the last of his four pre-war Duckworth novels. The first-issue dust jacket is the pictorial jacket designed by Misha Black; a correct first is identified by the Duckworth 1936 imprint together with that jacket, which should retain its printed price.

## Is this the true first?
London: Duckworth, 1936 is the true first. The first US appearance was in 1952, when Periscope-Holliday (New York) published it together with Venusberg in a single volume titled Two Novels: Venusberg and Agents and Patients.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Agents and Patients* by Anthony Powell a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/agents-and-patients
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.