# Is "Christmas Holiday" by W. Somerset Maugham a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Christmas Holiday by W. Somerset Maugham (William Heinemann, 1939) is identified by: Novel, first printing. UK Heinemann is the generally cited true first, with British publication in 1939 preceding the American Doubleday Doran edition, which was reviewed in October 1939.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Novel, first printing
- The UK William Heinemann edition (London, 1939) is the standard true first, bound in publisher's blue cloth lettered in gilt on the spine, in the original blue, turquoise and white pictorial dust jacket with the printed price present on an unaltered example
- The US Doubleday, Doran edition (Garden City, 1939) followed; it is bound in black cloth with gilt spine lettering and a red top-stain, and is a distinct issue rather than the primary first
- Publisher imprint reads William Heinemann
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | W. Somerset Maugham |
| Publisher | William Heinemann |
| Year | 1939 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Novel, first printing |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Novel, first printing. The UK William Heinemann edition (London, 1939) is the standard true first, bound in publisher's blue cloth lettered in gilt on the spine, in the original blue, turquoise and white pictorial dust jacket with the printed price present on an unaltered example. The US Doubleday, Doran edition (Garden City, 1939) followed; it is bound in black cloth with gilt spine lettering and a red top-stain, and is a distinct issue rather than the primary first.

## Is this the true first?
UK Heinemann is the generally cited true first, with British publication in 1939 preceding the American Doubleday Doran edition, which was reviewed in October 1939.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A US Literary Guild issue also appeared in 1939; it is a separate club printing and not the Heinemann first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Christmas Holiday* by W. Somerset Maugham a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/christmas-holiday
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.