Vernor Vinge First Editions

• Grimm's World — 1969 · Berkley MedallionPaperback original, Berkley Medallion X1750; copyright page states first Berkley printing, October 1969; cover art by Paul Lehr. Vinge's first novel, expanded from the novella 'Grimm's Story' in Orbit 4 (1968). Later revised as 'Tatja Grimm's World' (Baen, 1987). US Berkley Medallion paperback original (October 1969) is the true first; the 1987 Baen edition is a revised later version. None.
• The Witling — 1976 · DAW BooksDAW paperback original, DAW Collectors' Book No. 179 (1976), with first printing stated on the copyright page; the classic numbered yellow-spine DAW mass-market format, with cover art by George Barr. Vinge's second novel. US DAW paperback original (1976) is the true first; a UK Dennis Dobson hardcover (London) appeared later the same year and is the uncommon hardcover first, following the DAW issue. None; later Tor reprint (ISBN 0-7653-0886-X) is not the first edition.
• True Names — 1981 · DellFirst appeared in Dell's Binary Star No. 5 (February 1981), a mass-market paperback double pairing it with George R. R. Martin's 'Nightflyers'; interior illustrations by Jack Gaughan; final volume of the Binary Star series. The 1984 Bluejay 'True Names... and Other Dangers' is a later collection. True first appearance is the Dell Binary Star No. 5 paperback (February 1981); the seminal proto-cyberpunk novella. None.
• The Peace War — 1984 · Bluejay BooksBluejay Books hardcover, an octavo of 286 pages in cloth-backed boards; the copyright page states 'First Bluejay printing: August 1984' and the title page reads 'A Bluejay International Edition'. The first-state dust jacket carries cover art by Tom Kidd and the printed price at the top of the front flap, which should be present (not price-clipped) on a first-state copy. A recognized point of the first printing:…. US Bluejay hardcover (August 1984) is the true first. Realtime/Bobble vol. 1; 1985 Hugo nominee. The 1986 Bluejay book-club edition reuses the Tom Kidd art but lacks the stated 'First Bluejay printing' line, is a cheaper build, and carries a blind-stamped dot to the rear board.
• Marooned in Realtime — 1986 · Bluejay BooksUS Bluejay Books hardcover; the copyright page carries the printing statement 'First Bluejay Printing: September 1986'. Publisher's cloth binding with the spine titling stamped in contrasting ink; 270 pages, octavo. First-issue pictorial dust jacket with cover art by Tom Kidd and the publisher's printed price present on the front flap (present, not clipped, on a first-issue jacket). US Bluejay Books hardcover (September 1986) is the true first. Second book in the Realtime/Bobble sequence (following The Peace War). Issued among the very last Bluejay titles before the firm folded; distribution was handled through St. Martin's, so first-issue jackets and boards may carry St. Martin's/Bluejay International distribution notes. A simultaneous or near-simultaneous Science Fiction Book Club edition exists; club copies typically lack the 'First Bluejay Printing' statement, carry a blind gutter-code dot on the rear board, are printed on lighter bulked paper, and bear a jacket with no printed price.
• Tatja Grimm's World — 1987 · Baen BooksBaen Books mass-market paperback original of the revised text, published July 1987; the copyright page states the first printing (Baen's number-line/printing statement, with no later-printing date added). ISBN 0-671-65336-9. This is a revised and expanded version of the 1969 novel Grimm's World, retitled and given a new opening section drawn from the novelette The Barbarian Princess; the Baen 1987 paperback is the first edition of this revised text and the first appearance under the Tatja Grimm's World title. No hardcover preceded it, so the paperback original is the true first. None; as a paperback original there is no book-club hardcover for this text, and later Tor reissues are separately identified by their own imprint and ISBN.
• Threats and Other Promises — 1988 · Baen BooksStory collection. Baen Books mass-market paperback original, first printing stated on the copyright page as "First printing, November 1988" (ISBN 0-671-69790-0). As a paperback original there is no simultaneous or preceding hardcover; the wraps carry the printed cover price. The US Baen paperback original, first printing (November 1988), is the true first edition of this collection; there was no hardcover issue. None; a paperback original with no book-club edition. Later printings alter the stated "First printing, November 1988" line on the copyright page.
• A Fire Upon the Deep — 1992 · Tor BooksTor hardcover first printing with the 'First Edition' statement on the copyright page and a complete number line ending in 1. Priced dust jacket (price on the front flap); jacket art by Boris Vallejo, design by Carol Russo. Black cloth with silver spine lettering; publisher's boards. Locus SF Novel and Hugo winner. The US Tor 1992 hardcover is the true first; the UK Millennium 1992 edition is a separate printing. The Science Fiction Book Club edition has no price on the jacket, a blind-stamp/gutter dot on the rear board, and lacks the Tor number line ending in 1.
• A Deepness in the Sky — 1999 · Tor BooksTor hardcover first printing with the 'First Edition: March 1999' statement on the copyright page and a complete number line ending in 1. Priced dust jacket (price on the front flap); publisher's boards. Hugo, Campbell, and Locus SF Novel winner. The US Tor 1999 hardcover is the true first; the UK Millennium edition is a separate printing. The Science Fiction Book Club edition has no price on the jacket, a blind-stamp on the rear board, and lacks the Tor number line ending in 1.
• The Collected Stories of Vernor Vinge — 2001 · Tor BooksTor Books hardcover, New York, 2001. The copyright page carries the printer's statement 'First Edition: November 2001' together with a complete descending number line ending in 1; presence of the 1 confirms the first printing. Issued in a priced dust jacket. As a first collected volume of Vinge's short fiction, no earlier printing precedes it. The US Tor hardcover (2001) is the true first; there was no prior US or UK edition of this collection. Copies lacking the priced jacket, the stated 'First Edition: November 2001' line, or the complete number line ending in 1 indicate a book club or later printing rather than the first.
• Rainbows End — 2006 · Tor BooksFirst Tor hardcover, 2006 (ISBN 0-312-85684-7 / 978-0-312-85684-7). The copyright page states 'First Edition' and carries a full number line descending to 1 (…3 2 1); the priced dust jacket should retain the printed price on the front flap. Note the title carries no apostrophe (Rainbows End, not Rainbow's End), a point that distinguishes correct catalogue entries. The US Tor 2006 hardcover is the true first edition. UK and later printings follow it. The Science Fiction Book Club edition carries the usual rear-board blind stamp, lacks the stated 'First Edition' line and the number line descending to 1, and has no printed price on the jacket.
• The Children of the Sky — 2011 · Tor BooksTor Books hardcover, published October 2011, with "First Edition" stated on the copyright page and a full Tor number line reading 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 (ending in 1). The dust jacket carries art by Stephan Martinière and retains its printed price. Third Zones of Thought novel (sequel to A Fire Upon the Deep). The US Tor hardcover (2011) is the true first. Copies lacking the priced jacket, the stated "First Edition," and the full number line ending in 1 suggest a book club or later printing.

More Literary Fiction (US) & Award Winners shelves: Virginia Woolf, Vladimir Nabokov, W. Somerset Maugham, Walker Percy, Wallace Stevens, Walt Whitman.

← All authors · All genres · part of the First-Edition Identification resource.