Is My At the Mountains of Madness and Other Novels a First Edition?

The points of issue

• No printing statement appears on the first printing
• The colophon at the rear states an edition of three thousand copies although the run in fact came to 3,552, so a stated three-thousand colophon is normal on a first and is not itself evidence of anything later
• Later printings are stated and are catalogued as such by dealers — "a second printing of three thousand printed copies stated," "stated third impression," "stated corrected eighth printing" — so any impression notice rules out a first printing
• The first-state binding carries no head- or tailbands; an ABAA dealer description and the collecting literature agree on this point for this title
• The Lee Brown Coye jacket is green in the first state, depicting a shoggoth from the title novella; red and orange jackets are later states, and later priced jackets sit at a higher figure at the front flap

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

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 UK 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?

Arkham House (Sauk City), 1964, is the true first, and the census claim is confirmed: the first UK edition is Victor Gollancz (London), 1966, a first edition and first impression in its own right, bound in black buckram with gilt spine lettering and carrying the same selection. Both are collected — the Gollancz is the one to hold for a UK-first collection — but the Arkham precedes it by two years and is the true first. As with the companion Arkham volumes this is a "first thus": the novels had all been published previously, and what is first here is the selection and Derleth's introductory essay.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club edition of the Arkham volume is documented. The traps are Arkham's own stated later printings, and above all the corrected fifth printing of 1986 (reported at 3,990 copies) edited by S. T. Joshi, which restores the texts and drops Derleth's introduction; printings six through nine follow to 2001 carrying the corrected text. Facsimile jackets for Arkham House titles are commercially available, so a fresh green jacket is not by itself evidence of a first-state jacket.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of At the Mountains of Madness and Other Novels a first edition?

A first edition of At the Mountains of Madness and Other Novels by H. P. Lovecraft (Arkham House, Sauk City, Wisconsin) is identified by: No printing statement appears on the first printing.

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. Arkham House (Sauk City), 1964, is the true first, and the census claim is confirmed: the first UK edition is Victor Gollancz (London), 1966, a first edition and first impression in its own right, bound in black buckram with gilt spine lettering and carrying the same selection.

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

No book-club edition of the Arkham volume is documented. The traps are Arkham's own stated later printings, and above all the corrected fifth printing of 1986 (reported at 3,990 copies) edited by S. T. Joshi, which restores the texts and drops Derleth's introduction; printings six through nine follow to 2001 carrying the corrected text. Facsimile jackets for Arkham House titles are commercially available, so a fresh green jacket is not by itself evidence of a first-state jacket.

I have a first edition of At the Mountains of Madness and Other Novels — 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.