# Is "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer (Viking, 2001) is identified by: UK Viking first: copyright page reads 'First published 2001' with a Penguin number line ending in 1; ISBN 0-670-89962-3; octavo bound in midnight-blue cloth with silver foil spine lettering, 280pp with graphics at the foot of each page; first-state jacket by Tony Fleetwood, price unclipped. UK Viking is the true first, published April 2001 (26 April 2001), roughly a month ahead of the US Miramax/Hyperion edition (May 2001).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- UK Viking first: copyright page reads 'First published 2001' with a Penguin number line ending in 1
- ISBN 0-670-89962-3; octavo bound in midnight-blue cloth with silver foil spine lettering, 280pp with graphics at the foot of each page; first-state jacket by Tony Fleetwood, price unclipped
- Publisher imprint reads Viking
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Eoin Colfer |
| Publisher | Viking |
| Year | 2001 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | UK Viking first: copyright page reads 'First published 2001' with a Penguin number line… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
UK Viking first: copyright page reads 'First published 2001' with a Penguin number line ending in 1; ISBN 0-670-89962-3; octavo bound in midnight-blue cloth with silver foil spine lettering, 280pp with graphics at the foot of each page; first-state jacket by Tony Fleetwood, price unclipped.

## Is this the true first?
UK Viking is the true first, published April 2001 (26 April 2001), roughly a month ahead of the US Miramax/Hyperion edition (May 2001). The Viking cloth hardcover with 'First published 2001' and a number line ending in 1 is the prized first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
US edition (Talk Miramax/Hyperion 2001) is a separate later issue. Later UK printings advance the number line; film tie-in and book-club jackets exist and are not the first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Artemis Fowl* by Eoin Colfer a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/artemis-fowl
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.