# Is "Felix Holt, the Radical" by George Eliot a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Felix Holt, the Radical by George Eliot (William Blackwood & Sons, 1866) is identified by: First edition in three volumes, Edinburgh & London: William Blackwood & Sons, 1866, with half-titles present and 4 pages of integral publisher's advertisements (no catalogue) at the rear of volume III. The Blackwood three-decker is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition in three volumes, Edinburgh & London: William Blackwood & Sons, 1866, with half-titles present and 4 pages of integral publisher's advertisements (no catalogue) at the rear of volume III. The publisher's binding is sand-grained cinnamon cloth, covers blocked in blind and spines lettered and ruled in gilt, edges untrimmed, with pale yellow coated endpapers
- Standard references: Sadleir 814
- Wolff 2058
- Baker & Ross A8.1
- Publisher imprint reads William Blackwood & Sons
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | George Eliot |
| Publisher | William Blackwood & Sons |
| Year | 1866 |
| True first | American edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition in three volumes, Edinburgh & London: William Blackwood & Sons, 1866, with half-titles present and 4 pages of integral… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition in three volumes, Edinburgh & London: William Blackwood & Sons, 1866, with half-titles present and 4 pages of integral publisher's advertisements (no catalogue) at the rear of volume III. The publisher's binding is sand-grained cinnamon cloth, covers blocked in blind and spines lettered and ruled in gilt, edges untrimmed, with pale yellow coated endpapers. Standard references: Sadleir 814; Wolff 2058; Baker & Ross A8.1.

## Is this the true first?
The Blackwood three-decker is the true first. The English edition precedes/is concurrent with the first American edition (Harper & Brothers, New York, 1866); the London edition is the collected first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
John Carter recorded five binding variants lettered A-E: A, B and C are regarded as simultaneous primary bindings with no priority established, and D and E follow. No book-club issue bears on the 1866 first; later Blackwood Cabinet and collected-set printings are reprints.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Felix Holt, the Radical* by George Eliot a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/felix-holt-the-radical
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.