Isaac Asimov First Editions

• I, Robot — 1950 · Gnome Press'FIRST EDITION' stated on the copyright page with no later-printing indicia; the book was designed by David Kyle. First printing of 5,000 copies bound in red cloth lettered in black, with a robot holding a gearwheel stamped on the front board and the gearwheel alone on the spine. The first-issue dust jacket bears art by Edd Cartier and carries its printed price on the front flap (present on an unclipped jacket). Gnome Press, New York, 1950 is the true first, published December 2, 1950; it precedes the Grayson (UK) edition. The scarce Cartier-illustrated jacket is the key identifying element. Doubleday and later reprints are obviously later publishers; the red cloth stamped in black plus the 'FIRST EDITION' copyright statement and the Cartier jacket with its printed price identify the Gnome Press first.
• Pebble in the Sky — 1950 · Doubleday"First Edition" stated on the copyright page, with 1950 on both the title and copyright pages. Grey cloth with orange spine lettering and a green top stain, in a pictorial dust jacket priced 2.50 on the front flap, the rear panel carrying a photograph and biography of Asimov. Asimov's first published novel in hardcover. US Doubleday is the true first. The principal later issue is a 1951 printing that retains the 1950 dates but lacks the stated "First Edition" line and carries a lower flap price; the absence of the "First Edition" statement is the key distinguishing point. Doubleday's gutter-code dating system did not begin until the late 1950s, so neither the true first nor any contemporaneous reissue of this 1950 title bears a gutter code.
• Foundation — 1951 · Gnome PressDark blue cloth, red lettering on spine. First-state dust jacket with its printed price with NO mention of the later Foundation sequels; rear panel lists Gnome Press titles only (no 'Foundation and Empire' or 'Second Foundation'). Front flap has the famous misprint 'Hari Seldon.' Gnome address 80 East 11th Street, N.Y. Gnome Press is the true first of the entire trilogy (Foundation 1951, Foundation and Empire 1952, Second Foundation 1953). No prior magazine appearance counts as a 'book' first; stories were fixed up from Astounding. Later-state jackets describe the sequels on the rear flap — these are still first printing sheets but second-state jackets, worth less than the true first-state jacket. There was no contemporaneous US book-club edition of the Gnome printing; the danger is later-state jackets and the much later Doubleday omnibus. A jacket mentioning the sequels = second state. Doubleday reprints are clearly later publisher.
• The Stars, Like Dust — 1951 · DoubledayDoubleday first edition (Currey 44a), published February 1951, with "First Edition" stated on the copyright page. Issued in publisher's cloth with spine lettering and containing 218 pages of text. The first-issue dust jacket carries jacket art by Whitney Bender and a printed price on the front flap; a first-state jacket should retain that printed price (unclipped). US Doubleday is the true first edition (published February 1951). The story had earlier appeared serialized in Galaxy as "Tyrann," but the Doubleday hardcover is the first book appearance. Book club editions (a Doubleday book club printing followed) omit the "First Edition" statement on the copyright page, carry a blind-stamped device on the lower rear board, and lack the priced first-issue jacket.
• Foundation and Empire — 1952 · Gnome PressFirst edition, Gnome Press, 1952 (Currey A1A). First-state points: red boards lettered in black with the nebula/Galaxy device on the front board and Edd Cartier jacket art; the first-state dust jacket lists 26 titles on the rear panel. Confirm the binding and jacket states against Currey on each copy, as multiple binding and jacket states exist. The US Gnome Press edition is the true first. This is Volume 2 of the original Foundation trilogy. The later Science Fiction Book Club omnibus is a reprint. Among Gnome copies, verify the Currey first-state points, since reissued bindings and a second-state jacket exist.
• The Currents of Space — 1952 · DoubledayThe first printing states "First Edition" on the copyright page. It is bound in blue cloth-effect boards with the spine lettered in white. The first-issue dust jacket bears George Giusti's cover art and should retain its printed price on the front flap. Dealers note that the trade first shows no gutter/printing code, distinguishing it from later club issues. US Doubleday is the true first edition (1952), following serialization in Astounding Science-Fiction. Bound in blue boards, spine lettered white, with a Giusti pictorial jacket. Book-club editions omit "First Edition" on the copyright page and are printed on cheaper bulking paper; a club copy will lack the priced first-issue jacket. Many Doubleday club issues also bear a blind-stamped device on the rear board and a printing code on a late text leaf.
• Second Foundation — 1953 · Gnome PressFirst edition stated 'First Edition' on the copyright page. Binding has a priority state (blue cloth lettered in brown is generally cited as earliest; a green-cloth variant also exists). Jacket by Ric Binkley, priced on the front flap. Confirm against Currey for state precedence. US Gnome Press 1953 is the true first; Volume 3 completing the original Foundation trilogy. Later Science Fiction Book Club omnibus/reprint editions are separate and not the Gnome first. Verify the priority binding state via Currey.
• The Caves of Steel — 1954 · Doubleday & Company, Garden City, NYFirst edition stated 'First Edition' on the copyright page with no later-printing indication. First-issue dust jacket carries the printed price (2.95) on the front flap. Binding is publisher's dark blue leatherette/cloth with the spine lettered in red and red topstain (per Currey). Jacket art by Ruth Ray. First book in Asimov's Robot series; expanded from the Galaxy serialization. US Doubleday is the true first. The British T.V. Boardman hardcover (1954) and later paperbacks follow it. Doubleday science-fiction firsts carry an explicit 'First Edition' statement and use no number line. The Doubleday/Science Fiction Book Club edition is identified by a blind-stamp gutter code on the lower corner of the rear board and by the absence of a printed price; its boards and paper are noticeably cheaper stock and the jacket flap is unpriced (often marked 'Book Club Edition').
• The End of Eternity — 1955 · Doubleday & Company, Garden City, NY'First Edition' stated on the copyright page; printed price present on the dust jacket flap. Publisher's black cloth with red title stamping to the spine; 191 pages. Time-travel novel published August 1955. US Doubleday is the true first, preceding the later British and paperback editions. No magazine serialization preceded the book. The Science Fiction Book Club edition is identified by the rear-board blind-stamp gutter code and the absence of a printed price; the jacket flap reads 'Book Club Edition.' Board and paper stock are inferior to the trade first.
• The Martian Way and Other Stories — 1955 · DoubledayDoubleday & Company, Garden City, 1955, with "First Edition" stated on the copyright page. Asimov's first collection of short fiction, gathering "The Martian Way," "Youth," "The Deep," and "Sucker Bait" (written 1952-1954). Bound in original blue cloth. First-issue dust jacket with the publisher's printed price present on the front flap. The US Doubleday edition (1955) is the true first edition, identified by the stated "First Edition," the blue cloth, and the priced first-issue jacket. Book club editions omit the "First Edition" statement and carry a blind-stamped device on the lower rear board; they lack the priced first-issue jacket and are typically printed on cheaper bulking paper.
• Earth Is Room Enough — 1957 · Doubleday"First Edition" stated on the copyright page. Bound in black cloth boards with blue-stamped lettering on the spine (first-state stamping is sharp and bright, without the ghosting or fading seen on worn copies). Issued in a first-issue dust jacket designed by Tony Palladino, with the printed price present on the front flap. A collection of fifteen stories and two pieces of comic verse. US Doubleday (Garden City) is the true first edition (1957); no earlier printing precedes it. Book club editions omit the "First Edition" statement on the copyright page and are bound in gray faux-leather boards with blue titling rather than the black cloth of the trade first; the price-clipped or absent jacket price is not by itself decisive, so rely on the missing statement together with the substituted binding.
• The Naked Sun — 1957 · Doubleday"First Edition" stated on the copyright page. Issued in yellow cloth lettered in red, with a first-issue dust jacket with its printed price on the front flap. The second Elijah Baley / R. Daneel Olivaw novel. US Doubleday is the true first edition (1957), preceded by serialization in Astounding Science-Fiction. Book club editions omit "First Edition" on the copyright page and bear a blind-stamped device on the lower rear board, without the priced first-issue jacket.
• Nine Tomorrows — 1959 · Doubleday"First Edition" stated on the copyright page (Doubleday & Company, Garden City, NY, 1959), 236 pages. Bound in publisher's bluish-gray cloth lettered in white and black. The first-issue dust jacket retains its printed price on the front flap. The collection includes "The Last Question" among nine stories plus two pieces of comic verse. US Doubleday is the true first edition (1959). Book-club editions omit "First Edition" from the copyright page and carry a blind-stamped device on the lower rear board; a book-club gutter code (reported as A13) appears at page 236, and they lack the priced first-issue jacket.
• Fantastic Voyage — 1966 · Houghton MifflinFirst edition, Houghton Mifflin, Boston, 1966, octavo in cloth. The first printing is stated 'First Printing' on the copyright page. Jacket art by Dale Hennesy (also credited Hehnesy in some sources); the trade dust jacket carries its original printed price at the top of the front flap. A novelization of the 1966 film, from the screenplay by Harry Kleiner after the original story by Otto Klement and Jerome Bixby. The US Houghton Mifflin edition is the true first. A book-club edition also appeared in 1966. Book-club copies are typically identified by a blind stamp (small square or dot) on the lower rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price; they lack the 'First Printing' statement on the copyright page.
• The Gods Themselves — 1972 · DoubledayDoubleday (Garden City, New York) hardcover with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page and no later-printing indicated. The trade first is further confirmed by the Doubleday gutter code '13N' at the foot of page 238, denoting the March 1972 printing run. First-issue dust jacket carries the David November cover art and the printed price on the front flap (price present, unclipped); bound in publisher's…. The US Doubleday 1972 edition, with 'First Edition' stated and the '13N' gutter code on page 238, is the standard true first. The UK Victor Gollancz edition (1972) is a separate, near-simultaneous first issue in its own right. The Doubleday Book Club edition lacks the '13N' gutter code on page 238 and shows the usual club tells: a blind-stamp (dimple) on the rear board, thinner boards, and no printed price on the dust jacket, which instead carries a small alphanumeric code on the lower rear flap. Its copyright page does not carry the 'First Edition' statement.
• Foundation's Edge — 1982 · DoubledayDoubleday states 'First Edition' on the copyright page with no later-printing line; first-state copies show the gutter code on the final text leaf (reported as code on page 365). First-issue dust jacket carries the printed cover price. The US Doubleday 1982 trade hardcover is the true first edition. The UK Granada edition (1983) is later. A Whispers Press signed limited edition (1982) was issued in 1,000 numbered copies plus 26 lettered copies, signed by Asimov and publisher Stuart Schiff; it is a contemporaneous signed-limited 'first thus' rather than the trade first. The Science Fiction Book Club edition lacks the 'First Edition' statement, shows the blind-stamp on the rear board with a gutter code, uses cheaper boards, and carries a club jacket with no printed price.
• The Robots of Dawn — 1983 · DoubledayCopyright page states "First Edition" with no number line reaching 1 (Doubleday convention of the period). Trade dust jacket is priced on the front flap. Third Lije Baley / R. Daneel Olivaw robot-detective novel. The US Doubleday trade edition is the standard first. A Phantasia Press signed limited edition was issued concurrently (a numbered run of 750 and a lettered run of 35), each signed by Asimov. Book club editions show "Book Club Edition" on the lower front jacket flap, carry no printed price, and lack the stated "First Edition"; a blind gutter code may be present.
• Robots and Empire — 1985 · DoubledayCopyright page states "First Edition" with no number line reaching 1 (Doubleday convention), and the first-state first printing carries the code "P032" in the lower gutter of page 382. Bound in quarter black cloth over blue paper boards with silver spine lettering. Trade dust jacket is priced on the front flap. Bridges the Robot and Foundation series. The US Doubleday trade edition is the standard first. A Phantasia Press signed limited edition (a numbered run of 650, signed by Asimov) was issued concurrently. Book club editions show "Book Club Edition" on the front jacket flap, carry no printed price, and lack the "P032" gutter code on page 382.
• Foundation and Earth — 1986 · DoubledayThe first printing is identified by "First Edition" stated on the copyright page. Doubleday number lines of this era never descend to 1, so a stated "First Edition" (not a 1 in a number line) is the point of issue. Trade dust jacket is priced on the front flap. The US Doubleday trade edition is the standard first. A signed limited edition (a numbered leather-bound run of roughly 300, signed by Asimov and issued without a dust jacket) also exists. Book club editions show "Book Club Edition" on the front jacket flap, carry no printed price, and lack the stated "First Edition".
• Prelude to Foundation — 1988 · DoubledayDo not look for a number line ending in 1; Doubleday number lines of this period never reach 1, and the Doubleday trade first does not carry a stated "First Edition" on its copyright page. The first printing is identified by the absence of any later-printing indication and the original priced trade dust jacket (raised metallic lettering, Boris Vallejo cover art). The US Doubleday trade edition is the standard first. A signed limited edition (a numbered run of 500 in full leather and slipcase, signed by Asimov) was also issued. Book club editions show "Book Club Edition" on the front jacket flap and carry no printed price.
• Forward the Foundation — 1993 · DoubledayDo not look for a number line ending in 1 or a stated "First Edition". The Doubleday first printing carries neither: the copyright-page number line begins at 2 and there is no "First Edition" statement, because first-edition rights had been assigned to Easton Press (whose signed edition was never completed owing to Asimov's final illness). The first printing is identified by that line beginning with 2 and the…. The US Doubleday trade edition is the standard commercially issued first. Book club editions are identified by "Book Club Edition" on the front jacket flap and the absence of a printed price; treat this point cautiously and confirm against the jacket itself.

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