Is My Foe a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Two 1986 editions exist and priority is contested
• The South African edition - Ravan Press, Johannesburg, 1986 (dark brown cloth, gilt-stamped spine, dust jacket, about 157 pages) - is identified by many specialist dealers as the true first edition
• The UK trade edition (Secker & Warburg, London, 1986) appeared the same year: brown boards/cloth-backed boards with gilt spine lettering, green top-stain as issued, octavo, about 157-160 pages, pictorial dust jacket priced in sterling and unclipped on first issue
• Standard bibliographies list the title as London: Secker & Warburg, 1986
• Johannesburg: Ravan, 1986
• New York: Viking, 1987

How Ravan Press marked a first edition

• Copyright page reads 'First published [year] by Ravan Press (Pty) Ltd' (Johannesburg); the first printing carries the first-published year with no reprint notice.
• No number line — South African / British 'First published' convention; later printings add 'Reprinted [year]'.

Full Ravan Press 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 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?

Priority is contested between two 1986 editions; many specialists give the South African Ravan Press 1986 edition priority as the true first over the UK Secker & Warburg 1986. The US Viking edition is 1987 and later. A reworking of Robinson Crusoe.P-012532

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No club edition; risks are the later US Viking 1987 printing offered as a first, and assuming UK Secker is automatically the true first when the Ravan SA 1986 has a strong claim to priority.P-012533

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Foe a first edition?

A first edition of Foe by J. M. Coetzee (Ravan Press) is identified by: Two 1986 editions exist and priority is contested.

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. Priority is contested between two 1986 editions; many specialists give the South African Ravan Press 1986 edition priority as the true first over the UK Secker & Warburg 1986.

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

No club edition; risks are the later US Viking 1987 printing offered as a first, and assuming UK Secker is automatically the true first when the Ravan SA 1986 has a strong claim to priority.

I have a first edition of Foe — 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.