Is My Exiles a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First edition, 1918, published simultaneously on the same day, 25 May 1918, in London by Grant Richards (Slocum & Cahoon 14) and in New York by B. W. Huebsch (Slocum & Cahoon 15)
• The Grant Richards issue is in quarter sea-green cloth over dark (blue-)green boards with printed paper labels to spine and upper board; scarce first-issue jackets carry the “shelf with Ibsen and Hauptmann” blurb
• CORRECTION to census: the two editions were simultaneous same-day publications, not “London precedes by days” — Grant Richards holds only nominal bibliographic priority via Slocum & Cahoon's numbering

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

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 UK 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?

Simultaneous UK/US first publication on 25 May 1918: Grant Richards (London, S&C 14) and B. W. Huebsch (New York, S&C 15). Both are collected as the true first; Grant Richards is conventionally cited first only by bibliographic sequence, and Bonhams/auction descriptions explicitly call the Huebsch issue “published simultaneously with the English edition.” The census “Grant Richards precedes Huebsch by days” is not supported.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Later issues — Jonathan Cape reprints and the 1951 Viking edition that adds Joyce's own notes for the play — are first-thus reprints, not the 1918 first.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Exiles a first edition?

A first edition of Exiles by James Joyce (Grant Richards) is identified by: First edition, 1918, published simultaneously on the same day, 25 May 1918, in London by Grant Richards (Slocum & Cahoon 14) and in New York by B.

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. Simultaneous UK/US first publication on 25 May 1918: Grant Richards (London, S&C 14) and B.

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

Later issues — Jonathan Cape reprints and the 1951 Viking edition that adds Joyce's own notes for the play — are first-thus reprints, not the 1918 first.

I have a first edition of Exiles — 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.