5 Lorrie Moore first editions are documented on this shelf, from Self-Help (1985) to Birds of America (1998). Each linked guide gives the points of issue that separate a true first printing of that Lorrie Moore 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 Lorrie Moore copy in hand? Type the title into the First-Edition Checker or photograph the copyright page with Snap & Sort.
- Self-Help — 1985 · Alfred A. KnopfBorzoi/Knopf copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' with the publisher's number-line present and descending to a terminal '1'; Borzoi colophon. Quarter grey cloth over grey paper boards, silver spine lettering; dust jacket priced on the front flap. ISBN 0-394-53921-4. Moore's debut story collection. The terminal '1' in the number-line is decisive, because a later printing of the first edition can retain the words…. The US Knopf hardcover (1985) is the true first. Later Plume/Vintage paperbacks are a first-thus, not the first. Book-club editions lack the number-line and the jacket flap price and run lighter in weight.
- Anagrams — 1986 · Alfred A. KnopfBorzoi/Knopf copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' with the number-line descending to a terminal '1'; Borzoi colophon. Quarter light-blue cloth over grey paper boards with gilt lettering; confirm the jacket flap price is unclipped. Moore's first novel (her second book). The US Knopf hardcover (1986) is the true first; a UK Faber edition followed. Book-club issues omit the number-line and the jacket flap price.
- Like Life — 1990 · Alfred A. KnopfBorzoi/Knopf copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' with the number-line ending in a terminal '1'; Borzoi colophon. Quarter blue cloth over light-blue paper boards, silver spine lettering; priced dust jacket. Moore's second story collection (eight stories). The US Knopf hardcover (1990) is the true first. Later paperbacks and book-club editions are not firsts; the number-line and the jacket flap price are absent on club copies.
- Who Will Run the Frog Hospital? — 1994 · Alfred A. KnopfBorzoi/Knopf copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' with the number-line descending to a terminal '1'; Borzoi colophon. Quarter grey cloth over grey paper boards with gilt lettering; confirm the jacket flap price is unclipped. The US Knopf hardcover (1994) is the true first. A UK edition followed; do not rely on a specific UK publisher or date here unless verified on the copy in hand. Book-club editions lack the number-line and the jacket flap price.
- Birds of America — 1998 · Alfred A. KnopfBorzoi/Knopf copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' with the full number-line ending in a terminal '1'; Borzoi colophon. Confirm the dust-jacket front-flap price is present and unclipped. Moore's best-known and most-collected story collection (a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist). The US Knopf hardcover (1998) is the true first; the UK Faber edition is a separate first-thus. Book-of-the-Month and other club copies are lighter, lack the number-line and the flap price, and may show a small blind-stamp on the rear board.
More Literary Fiction (US) & Award Winners shelves: Louise Erdrich, M. F. K. Fisher, M. John Harrison, MacKinlay Kantor, Madeline Miller, Maria Edgeworth.
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