Is My Bad Chili a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Two 1997 firsts exist
• The true first is the Mojo Press edition, limited to 500 copies signed by author and artist
• The Mysterious Press New York trade hardcover (ISBN 0892966196) is the first trade edition, identified by the number line on the copyright page and no later-printing or book-club statement

How Mysterious Press marked a first edition

• Copyright page states 'First Printing' (often with month and year) plus a descending number line that retains a '1' for the first printing — both present on a true first.
• As the imprint moved through corporate parents (independent → Warner Books → Grand Central / Hachette), follow the prevailing parent's number-line convention; the lowest number present indicates the printing.

Full Mysterious Press first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
3. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
4. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

Mojo Press limited edition (500 signed copies) is the true first; the Mysterious Press trade hardcover is the first trade edition and followed it. Hap and Leonard book four.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

A book-club edition of the Mysterious Press trade text exists; it lacks the number line and is typically a smaller, blind-stamped, lighter volume without a printed jacket price.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Bad Chili a first edition?

A first edition of Bad Chili by Joe R. Lansdale (Mysterious Press) is identified by: Two 1997 firsts exist.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). Mojo Press limited edition (500 signed copies) is the true first; the Mysterious Press trade hardcover is the first trade edition and followed it.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

A book-club edition of the Mysterious Press trade text exists; it lacks the number line and is typically a smaller, blind-stamped, lighter volume without a printed jacket price.

I have a first edition of Bad Chili — what should I do?

If you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than lost. To sell, see the author’s collecting guide. Either way, nothing collectible ends up in a landfill.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.