2 Tracy Kidder first editions are documented on this shelf, from The Soul of a New Machine (1981) to Among Schoolchildren (1989) across 2 different publishers. Each linked guide gives the points of issue that separate a true first printing of that Tracy Kidder 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 Tracy Kidder copy in hand? Type the title into the First-Edition Checker or photograph the copyright page with Snap & Sort.

The Soul of a New Machine — 1981 · Little, Brown and CompanyLittle, Brown and Company, Boston, 1981. The copyright page states 'First Edition' (Little, Brown's convention of a stated 'First Edition' line for the first printing), with ISBN 0-316-49170-5. The first-issue dust jacket, designed by Peter deAngeli, carries the printed price on the front flap and is found unclipped on trade firsts. Winner of the 1982 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction and the National Book Award. The US Little, Brown edition is the true first, preceding the UK Allen Lane edition. Look for the stated 'First Edition' line paired with a priced deAngeli jacket to confirm the trade first. Book-of-the-Month Club copies do not state 'First Edition,' lack the printed jacket price, and carry a small blindstamp (dot) to the rear board; the trade first is distinguished by the stated 'First Edition' plus the priced jacket.
Among Schoolchildren — 1989 · Houghton Mifflin CompanyCloth-backed boards (red cloth spine, speckled paper-covered boards). Copyright page carries a number line descending to 1. First-state dust jacket present. US Houghton Mifflin (Boston), 1989, is the true first. By 1989 Houghton Mifflin identified first printings by a number line ending in 1, not by a printed First Printing statement; confirm the line descends to 1.

More Nonfiction & Memoir shelves: William H. Prescott, William James, Adam Smith, Alexis de Tocqueville, Alfred Russel Wallace, Barbara W. Tuchman.

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