The points of issue
Copyright page carries the FSG first-edition statement with no later-printing notation. ISBN 0-374-10520-0; black cloth, roughly 700 pages; first-issue jacket retains the printed price unclipped.
Is this the true first?
The US FSG edition is the true first omnibus, collecting Basin and Range (1981), In Suspect Terrain (1983), Rising from the Plains (1986), and Assembling California (1993), plus the new final section Crossing the Craton. Won the 1999 Pulitzer for General Nonfiction.
Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club issue of note; the individual constituent volumes (FSG, 1981-1993) are separate firsts. The FSG first-edition statement and the unclipped printed-price jacket identify this omnibus first.
Frequently asked questions
Is my copy of Coming into the Country — deeper McPhee: Annals of the Former World a first edition?
Look for these first-edition points: Copyright page carries the FSG first-edition statement with no later-printing notation. ISBN 0-374-10520-0; black cloth, roughly 700 pages; first-issue jacket retains the printed price unclipped.
How do I tell the first printing from a later one?
Check the copyright page for the publisher's first-printing convention and confirm the points above. The US FSG edition is the true first omnibus, collecting Basin and Range (1981), In Suspect Terrain (1983), Rising from the Plains (1986), and Assembling California (1993), plus the new final section Crossing the Craton. Won the 1999 Pulitzer for General Nonfiction.
Is the book-club edition the same as the first?
No book-club issue of note; the individual constituent volumes (FSG, 1981-1993) are separate firsts. The FSG first-edition statement and the unclipped printed-price jacket identify this omnibus first.
I have a first edition of Coming into the Country — deeper McPhee: Annals of the Former World — what should I do?
If you're clearing books, New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup in Albuquerque, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies aren't lost. To sell, see the author's collecting guide. Either way, nothing valuable ends up in a landfill.