Is My Dance of the Happy Shades a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Ryerson Press, Toronto, 1968 - Munro's debut and first story collection, which won the 1968 Governor General's Award for English-language Fiction
• Bound in green cloth boards with gilt spine lettering, issued in a dust jacket, and includes a foreword by Hugh Garner
• The 1968 first printing is not reliably identified by an explicit printed 'First Edition' statement; dealers establish it by date and points rather than a self-declared edition line
• Key point of issue is the dust jacket state: the true first-issue jacket has NO gold 'Winner of Governor General's Award' sticker on the lower-right front panel
• The award was won the same year as publication, so the prize sticker was added afterward; sticker'd copies are a later state (catalogued by some as first edition, second printing)
• Seek the first-issue jacket without the sticker, priced rather than clipped

How Ryerson Press marked a first edition

• 1829 to 1919 (Methodist Book & Publishing House, with general trade books issued under the book-steward's name, most notably William Briggs to 1918): religious-press origin; first editions are identified by a dated title…
• 1919 to 1960s (The Ryerson Press): trade and literary publishing; first printings typically lack any added printing line, though 'First published' statements appear on some titles. The Ryerson Poetry Chap-Book series (19…

Full Ryerson Press 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. 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 Canadian 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?

Canadian Ryerson 1968 is the true first and quite scarce; the US edition is later. Munro's debut.P-001154

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No club edition; primary risk is a later printing/state or the US edition being mis-described as the first.P-001155

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Dance of the Happy Shades a first edition?

A first edition of Dance of the Happy Shades by Alice Munro (Ryerson Press) is identified by: Ryerson Press, Toronto, 1968 - Munro's debut and first story collection, which won the 1968 Governor General's Award for English-language Fiction.

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. Canadian Ryerson 1968 is the true first and quite scarce; the US edition is later.

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

No club edition; primary risk is a later printing/state or the US edition being mis-described as the first.

I have a first edition of Dance of the Happy Shades — 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.