# Is "Brief Candles" by Aldous Huxley a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Brief Candles by Aldous Huxley (Chatto & Windus, 1930) is identified by: First edition of Huxley's collection of four stories (Chawdron; The Rest Cure; The Claxtons; After the Fireworks). UK Chatto & Windus is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition of Huxley's collection of four stories (Chawdron
- The Rest Cure
- The Claxtons
- After the Fireworks)
- The trade first is in red cloth
- A signed limited edition of 842 numbered copies, signed by Huxley on the half-title and bound in black cloth, was also issued
- Publisher imprint reads Chatto & Windus

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Aldous Huxley |
| Publisher | Chatto & Windus |
| Year | 1930 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition of Huxley's collection of four stories (Chawdron |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition of Huxley's collection of four stories (Chawdron; The Rest Cure; The Claxtons; After the Fireworks). The trade first is in red cloth. A signed limited edition of 842 numbered copies, signed by Huxley on the half-title and bound in black cloth, was also issued.

## Is this the true first?
UK Chatto & Windus is the true first. A concurrent New York edition was issued by The Fountain Press in 1930. Confirm the Chatto imprint and 1930 dating.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Distinguish the signed limited issue from the ordinary trade printing; no book-club edition is a point of issue here.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Brief Candles* by Aldous Huxley a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/brief-candles
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.