9 Elmore Leonard first editions are documented on this shelf, from The Big Bounce (1969) to Rum Punch (1992) across 6 different publishers. Each linked guide gives the points of issue that separate a true first printing of that Elmore Leonard title from later printings and book-club copies — the publisher and year to expect, the number-line or edition-statement conventions, and the tells that show up in online listings.
Identification only, per the house rule: no prices and no appraisals here. Checking a Elmore Leonard copy in hand? Type the title into the First-Edition Checker or photograph the copyright page with Snap & Sort.
- The Big Bounce — 1969 · Gold Medal BooksTrue first is the paperback original, Fawcett Gold Medal d1958 (1969), the printed price. Leonard's first crime novel and first contemporary (non-Western) novel; rejected by many publishers and issued as a PBO. Gold Medal logo and catalog number; first printing has no later-printing statement. A key, sought Leonard PBO. Paperback is the true first. Reissued repeatedly (and after the 1969 and 2004 films); those are reprints/first-thus. There was no contemporaneous hardcover. No book-club edition. First Gold Medal d1958 printing carries the original the printed price; later printings raise price and add printing data; tie-ins postdate the films.
- Valdez Is Coming — 1969 · Robert HaleCENSUS CLAIM REFUTED. A hardcover first does exist and it precedes: Robert Hale, London, 1969, cloth in a pictorial dust jacket, catalogued as the first edition by James M. Pickard (ABA/ILAB) and by Rooke Books (PBFA), the latter stating explicitly that "This first edition, published in the UK, precedes the first US edition, which was released in 1970." The Hale printing is reported to have been small and…. True first: Robert Hale, London, 1969 (hardcover). First US: Fawcett/Gold Medal, Greenwich, October 1970 (paperback original, R2328) — a paperback original in the US, which is the point the census note was reaching for, but it is the first American edition, not the true first. Both are collected: the Hale as the true first, the Gold Medal as the first US and the form in which American readers met the book.…. No book-club issue documented for the Hale. For the US paperback, the traps are later Gold Medal printings and film tie-in issues keyed to the 1971 Edwin Sherin / Burt Lancaster adaptation; these carry a later printed cover price and, where present, film imagery not possible on a pre-film 1970 first printing. Later reprint paperbacks (e.g. Bantam) are plainly distinguished by imprint.
- Fifty-Two Pickup — 1974 · Delacorte PressDelacorte Press first, 1974; designated a 'Delacorte Suspense Novel of the Year'; copyright page states 'First printing' (Delacorte of this period used a stated 'First printing,' not a number line). First-issue black dust jacket lettered in red with the gun-and-film-reel graphic and the printed flap price. US Delacorte (1974) is the true first; the UK Secker & Warburg edition followed the same year. One of Leonard's first crime hardcovers; the black jacket is notoriously hard to find without flaws. Book-club editions lack the printed flap price and typically show a blind-stamped dot to the rear board; later printings drop the 'First printing' statement.
- Swag (also as Ryan's Rules) — 1976 · Delacorte PressDelacorte Press first, 1976, hardcover under the title 'Swag'; copyright page states 'First printing' (stated first printing rather than a number line); first-issue dust jacket with printed flap price. US Delacorte (1976) hardcover titled 'Swag' is the true first published edition. 'Ryan's Rules' (a Dell paperback, 1978) is a later retitle of the same text; the hardcover under 'Swag' precedes it. 'Ryan's Rules' paperbacks are later issues; book-club copies lack the printed flap price.
- LaBrava — 1983 · Arbor HouseUS Arbor House first edition, 1983; first printing has the full number line ending in 1 on the copyright page. Black half cloth over red paper-covered boards, gilt spine lettering; grey-and-red dust jacket, first issue with the printed price intact on the front flap. 283 pp. US Arbor House (1983) is the true first; won the 1984 Edgar Award for Best Novel. UK Viking edition (1984) follows. Distinct from the separately listed Get Shorty and The Big Bounce. Book-club edition is distinguished chiefly by the absence of a price on the jacket front flap; it also lacks the full number line to 1 and is on lighter bulked paper, often with a blind-stamped dot on the rear board.
- Spadework (LaBrava) — 1983 · Arbor HouseThe Edgar winner is 'LaBrava', US Arbor House first, 1983, with a full number line counting down to 1 on the copyright page and the 1983 price intact on the front jacket flap. Won the 1984 Edgar Award for Best Novel. The US Arbor House 1983 'LaBrava' is the true first; the UK Viking/Allen Lane edition is a first-thus. Book-club editions are usually smaller and lack the jacket price; later printings drop the terminal 1 from the number line.
- Glitz — 1985 · Arbor HouseArbor House first edition, New York, 1985; the first printing carries the publisher's full number line descending to 1 (10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1) on the copyright page. The first-issue dust jacket is priced at the front flap, with the printed price present on an unclipped example. Leonard's breakout bestseller. The US Arbor House edition (1985) is the true first; a UK Viking edition followed the same year. This is the book that brought Leonard mainstream success. Book-club editions lack the printed jacket price and use smaller, lighter boards; later printings break the number line so it no longer ends in 1.
- Get Shorty — 1990 · Delacorte PressThe Delacorte Press first printing, New York, 1990: octavo of 292 pages, bound in white cloth spine over black paper-covered boards, titling stamped in green on the spine and a device blind-embossed to the front board. The copyright page carries the number line descending to 1, marking the first printing. First-issue dust jacket designed by Andrew Newman with a photograph by Joan Leonard; the jacket should retain…. The US Delacorte Press 1990 hardcover is the true first, preceding the UK Viking edition. The trade first with the full number line ending in 1 and the priced first-issue jacket is the collectible form; signed copies are especially sought. The Book Club Edition is reduced in size, is bound without the same weight of boards, and carries a blind stamp (often a small square or dot) to the rear board; its jacket has no printed price and it lacks the full trade number line. Confirm the trade first by the priced first-issue jacket and the line ending in 1.
- Rum Punch — 1992 · Delacorte PressDelacorte Press first, 1992; the copyright page carries the full number line '10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1'. The volume is quarter-bound in black and red cloth with silver stamping to the spine; the pictorial first-issue dust jacket retains its printed price on the front flap. Basis for the film 'Jackie Brown.'. The US Delacorte edition (1992) is the true first; a UK Viking edition followed the same year. Book-club copies lack the printed jacket price; later printings break the number line so it no longer ends in 1.
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