Is My Christ Stopped at Eboli a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first is Cristo si è fermato a Eboli, Giulio Einaudi Editore, Turin, September 1945 — the author's first book, written in hiding in Florence between December 1943 and July 1944
• The notable bibliographic oddity, and a useful authentication check, is that Einaudi issued this autobiographical narrative not as fiction but in its 'Saggi' (Essays) series; the first edition runs to 243 pages and was printed on the poor greyish wartime stock characteristic of Einaudi's output as the house re-established itself after the war
• The original sovraccoperta (dust jacket) is recorded by dealers as extremely scarce and is very often absent
• A second edition followed in 1946 and a reprint in 1947, both separable by their dated title/copyright leaves
• On the Farrar, Straus and Company first American edition (New York, 1947, translated by Frances Frenaye), a second printing dated May 1947 is recorded and is stated as such — a true first printing therefore shows no later-printing notice on the copyright page; publisher's red cloth is common to both printings and does not by itself separate them, and the jacket should be present and priced at the flap
• An 'ff' colophon point is repeated in aggregated dealer listings but could not be corroborated independently and is not asserted here

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Verify this is the US true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. 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.
6. 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?

Italian true first: Einaudi, Turin, September 1945. In English, the United States precedes the United Kingdom: Farrar, Straus and Company, New York, 1947 (Frances Frenaye translation, subtitled 'The Story of a Year') is the first edition in English, ahead of the Cassell, London edition of 1948. Collectors of the English text should note the US 1947 is the first English-language appearance, not merely the first American.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club issue is documented for the Einaudi first. On the US side the May 1947 second printing is the common reprint trap because it shares the publisher's red cloth with the first. A Time Inc. Reading Program edition (1964) and the later Farrar, Straus and Giroux paperback (ISBN 0374530092) are reprints/'first thus' only. Later Einaudi series issues (Gli struzzi, Einaudi tascabili, Super ET) are separable by series name and ISBN.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Christ Stopped at Eboli a first edition?

A first edition of Christ Stopped at Eboli by Carlo Levi (Giulio Einaudi Editore, Turin) is identified by: The true first is Cristo si è fermato a Eboli, Giulio Einaudi Editore, Turin, September 1945 — the author's first book, written in hiding in Florence between December 1943 and July 1944.

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

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. Italian true first: Einaudi, Turin, September 1945.

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

No book-club issue is documented for the Einaudi first. On the US side the May 1947 second printing is the common reprint trap because it shares the publisher's red cloth with the first. A Time Inc. Reading Program edition (1964) and the later Farrar, Straus and Giroux paperback (ISBN 0374530092) are reprints/'first thus' only. Later Einaudi series issues (Gli struzzi, Einaudi tascabili, Super ET) are separable by series name and ISBN.

I have a first edition of Christ Stopped at Eboli — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And 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 discarded.

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.