Is My Circe a First Edition?

The points of issue

• True first is Little, Brown and Company, New York, 10 April 2018 (ISBN 9780316556347)
• The copyright page carries the Hachette-style dated statement reported as "First Edition, April 2018" together with a complete number line ending in 1 ("10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1") — the number line to 1 is the decisive test and is independently confirmed by dealers; later printings are catalogued off the number line (the printed pricet-printing copies are in the trade)
• Binding is black boards with gilt lettering to the spine; endpapers are patterned in orange and white with an island map; the jacket is black with a copper illustration of a woman's face
• Jacket should be present and unclipped with the price present at the flap
• The first UK edition is Bloomsbury, London, 2018 (ISBN 9781408890080); a Bloomsbury "Exclusive Signed First Edition" issue exists, hand-numbered within a limitation of 250 and embossed at the title page

How Little, Brown and Company marked a first edition

• From 1940 onward: Little, Brown adopted an explicit statement, printing 'First Edition' OR 'First Printing' on the copyright page of a first printing. Presence of that phrase, with no overriding later-printing line, deno…
• Late 1970s onward: Little, Brown added a descending number line to the copyright page. Per the trade-house standard, the first printing is present only when the line still contains a '1' (e.g., '10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1'); t…

Full Little, Brown and Company first-edition guide →

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. 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.
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?

US precedes — the reverse of The Song of Achilles, which is exactly the trap on this author. Little, Brown (US) published on 10 April 2018, confirmed by both the author's own site and the standard reference record; Bloomsbury issued the UK edition afterwards. Both editions are collected and both should be named. One caveat, stated plainly: sources disagree on the exact UK date — the reference record and UK trade listings give 19 April 2018, while Miller's own site announced "May 3rd in the UK." The discrepancy does not disturb precedence; on every source consulted the US edition precedes the UK by weeks. The 2025 Folio Society illustrated edition (Julie Dillon, slipcased, gilt top edge) is "first thus" only.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club edition documented in the dealer census consulted. Reprint tells are the copyright page number line and the loss of the dated "First Edition, April 2018" statement. The main confusion sources are retailer and signed-limitation variants — the Bloomsbury numbered signed issue of 250 and the later Folio Society edition — rather than club issues.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Circe a first edition?

A first edition of Circe by Madeline Miller (Little, Brown and Company) is identified by: True first is Little, Brown and Company, New York, 10 April 2018 (ISBN 9780316556347).

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). US precedes — the reverse of The Song of Achilles, which is exactly the trap on this author.

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

No book-club edition documented in the dealer census consulted. Reprint tells are the copyright page number line and the loss of the dated "First Edition, April 2018" statement. The main confusion sources are retailer and signed-limitation variants — the Bloomsbury numbered signed issue of 250 and the later Folio Society edition — rather than club issues.

I have a first edition of Circe — 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.