# Is "Earth Abides" by George R. Stewart a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Earth Abides by George R. Stewart (Random House, 1949) is identified by: The first printing is stated: "First Printing" appears on the copyright page, and its absence rules out the first. The US Random House edition (New York, 1949) is the true first and the census is correct on that point.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The first printing is stated: "First Printing" appears on the copyright page, and its absence rules out the first
- Binding is a dark blue cloth spine over lighter blue cloth boards, blindstamped design motif to the front cover, lettered in silver to the spine; octavo, 373 pp
- The dust jacket carries the full-colour pictorial artwork by H. Lawrence Hoffman and is priced at the flap on the first issue — jacket presence and condition are the principal collecting concern for this title
- Publisher imprint reads Random House
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | George R. Stewart |
| Publisher | Random House |
| Year | 1949 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The first printing is stated: "First Printing" appears on the copyright page, and its absence rules out the first |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
The first printing is stated: "First Printing" appears on the copyright page, and its absence rules out the first. Binding is a dark blue cloth spine over lighter blue cloth boards, blindstamped design motif to the front cover, lettered in silver to the spine; octavo, 373 pp. The dust jacket carries the full-colour pictorial artwork by H. Lawrence Hoffman and is priced at the flap on the first issue — jacket presence and condition are the principal collecting concern for this title.

## Is this the true first?
The US Random House edition (New York, 1949) is the true first and the census is correct on that point. The census's "UK Gollancz 1950" is NOT corroborated: multiple dealer listings, including a copy explicitly catalogued as the third printing of the first British edition, date the Victor Gollancz (London) edition to 1949, while other references cite a 1950 Gollancz printing. The UK year is therefore unsettled between 1949 and 1950; this does not disturb US precedence, since Stewart was an American author published first in New York. The book won the first International Fantasy Award (1951), as the census states.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Earth Abides was issued by the Science Fiction Book Club, and club printings are the most common trap. Book-club copies lack the stated "First Printing" on the copyright page; the standard club tells apply — a blindstamped dot or square on the rear board, cheaper bulked paper and smaller trim, and a jacket without a price at the flap. The Easton Press "Collector's Edition" (1991, full leather, gilt, artwork by Toni L. Taylor, introduction by Arthur O. Lewis) is a modern "first thus" and is regularly miscatalogued as a first edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Earth Abides* by George R. Stewart a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/earth-abides
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.