Is My Desperate Characters a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first is the US Harcourt, Brace & World edition of 1970 (156 pp.), quarter-bound in orange/rust cloth spine over black paper-covered boards, the spine lettered in black and stamped/decorated in yellow, with the dust jacket present and priced at the front flap
• The first printing states 'First edition' on the copyright page with no number line — the Harcourt, Brace & World house point in force before the firm became Harcourt Brace Jovanovich later in 1970 (HBJ books switch to a number line)
• Dealer catalog descriptions differ slightly on the spine-cloth color (orange/rust vs. red) but agree on the black paper boards and the black-and-yellow spine lettering

How Harcourt, Brace & World marked a first edition

• 1960-1970 (Harcourt, Brace & World): continued 'First Edition' / 'First American Edition'.

Full Harcourt, Brace & World 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 Harcourt, Brace & World (1970) precedes the UK edition. A UK issue followed under Macmillan, London (ISBN 0-333-12072-8); the US Harcourt printing is the collected true first. The 1999 W. W. Norton reissue carrying a Jonathan Franzen introduction is a later 'first thus,' not the first edition.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club printing is documented for the first here. Later reprints include a Harcourt Brace Jovanovich paperback and the 1999 Norton edition (new introduction) — reprints / 'first thus,' not firsts.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Desperate Characters a first edition?

A first edition of Desperate Characters by Paula Fox (Harcourt, Brace & World) is identified by: The true first is the US Harcourt, Brace & World edition of 1970 (156 pp.), quarter-bound in orange/rust cloth spine over black paper-covered boards, the spine lettered in black and stamped/decorated in yellow, with the dust jacket present and priced at the front flap.

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 Harcourt, Brace & World (1970) precedes the UK edition.

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

No book-club printing is documented for the first here. Later reprints include a Harcourt Brace Jovanovich paperback and the 1999 Norton edition (new introduction) — reprints / 'first thus,' not firsts.

I have a first edition of Desperate Characters — 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.