4 Susan Cooper first editions are documented on this shelf, from Over Sea, Under Stone (1965) to The Grey King (1975) across 3 different publishers. Each linked guide gives the points of issue that separate a true first printing of that Susan Cooper 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 Susan Cooper copy in hand? Type the title into the First-Edition Checker or photograph the copyright page with Snap & Sort.
- Over Sea, Under Stone — 1965 · Jonathan CapeTrue first is the 1965 Jonathan Cape UK edition stating First published 1965, with textured paper-covered boards, gilt spine lettering, and illustrations by Margery Gill, in the first-issue pictorial jacket with its printed price to the inside flap. Cooper's first novel and the first book of the Dark Is Rising sequence. The UK Jonathan Cape 1965 edition is the true first; the US Harcourt, Brace & World edition followed in 1966 and is a separate, later issue. This is the only title in the sequence for which the UK edition is the true first. US Harcourt copies (1966) are not the true first. Club editions carry a blind-stamp and lack the original price on the jacket.
- The Dark Is Rising — 1973 · AtheneumUS Atheneum first printing dated 1973 on the copyright page with no later-printing statement, illustrations by Alan E. Cober, and a first-state jacket without the Newbery Honor seal and retaining the original price. The Atheneum US 1973 edition is generally taken by collectors as the true first; the Chatto & Windus UK edition also appeared in 1973, so exact month priority is not firmly established, but the US issue carries the collector consensus as the first. This is the second book of the Dark Is Rising sequence and a 1974 Newbery Honor book. Later printings and reprint jackets add the Newbery Honor seal and may state a later printing. Book-club copies carry a blind-stamp to the rear board and lack the original price on the jacket.
- The Grey King — 1975 · Atheneum / Margaret K. McElderry BooksFirst edition published 1975 by Atheneum (Margaret K. McElderry Books), New York, with illustrations by Michael Heslop; the fourth book in The Dark Is Rising sequence. The first printing states First Edition on the copyright page. Cloth binding; first-issue dust jacket carries the original price. US true first edition (Atheneum, 1975), which appeared at essentially the same time as the UK Chatto & Windus edition; reported US release dates place the Atheneum printing at least as early as the UK one. Awarded the Newbery Medal in 1976. Collectors track both the US and UK firsts. Atheneum reprints drop the stated First Edition; book-club editions typically lack a printed jacket price. The UK Chatto & Windus 1975 edition is the separate true first for that market.
- The Grey King — 1975 · AtheneumUS Atheneum first printing dated 1975 on the copyright page with no later-printing statement, illustrations by Michael Heslop, and a first-state jacket without the Newbery Medal seal retaining the original price to the front flap. The Atheneum US edition was published in September 1975, preceding the Chatto & Windus UK edition of October 1975, making the US issue the true first. Fourth book in the Dark Is Rising sequence and winner of the 1976 Newbery Medal. Later printings and reprint jackets add the gold Newbery Medal seal. Book-club copies carry a blind-stamp and lack the original price on the jacket.
More Children's & YA shelves: Suzanne Collins, Virginia Hamilton, Virginia Lee Burton, William Steig, A. A. Milne (illustrated by E. H. Shepard), Astrid Lindgren.
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