Is My Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first edition is the McGraw-Hill Book Company issue of 1968 (Abbey's first book-length work of nonfiction), with "First Edition" stated on the copyright page and no later printings listed
• Collation runs to xiv plus 269 pages; the first printing was limited to about five thousand copies
• Bound in brown cloth with the spine lettered in white and beige
• The dust jacket and the in-text drawings are by Peter Parnall, and the first-state jacket carries the printed price to the front flap and should be present and unrestored
• A signed first-edition copy adds Abbey's autograph, most often to the title page

How McGraw-Hill marked a first edition

• From 1956 onward: adopted a consistent 'First Edition' statement on the COPYRIGHT PAGE and noted subsequent printings.

Full McGraw-Hill 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 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 McGraw-Hill 1968 is the true first; the UK (Robert Hale, 1969) edition is a separate first. A separate 'Desert Solitaire' entry already exists; this entry adds copyright-page and jacket points to distinguish the true first from later trade reprints and the Ballantine paperback.P-036642

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Book-club editions and later printings reprint the text but are not the first edition: they omit the priced first-state jacket, are usually printed on thinner paper, and may bear a book-club blind-stamp to the rear board. Use the stated "First Edition" line and the priced Parnall jacket to be certain.P-036643

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness a first edition?

A first edition of Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness by Edward Abbey (McGraw-Hill) is identified by: The true first edition is the McGraw-Hill Book Company issue of 1968 (Abbey's first book-length work of nonfiction), with "First Edition" stated on the copyright page and no later printings listed.

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. US McGraw-Hill 1968 is the true first; the UK (Robert Hale, 1969) edition is a separate first.

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

Book-club editions and later printings reprint the text but are not the first edition: they omit the priced first-state jacket, are usually printed on thinner paper, and may bear a book-club blind-stamp to the rear board. Use the stated "First Edition" line and the priced Parnall jacket to be certain.

I have a first edition of Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness — 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.