# Is "For Whom the Bell Tolls" by Ernest Hemingway a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway (Charles Scribner's Sons, 1940) is identified by: First printing has the 'A' with 1940 imprint and the first-issue dust jacket WITHOUT the photographer's credit ('Photograph by...') on the rear flap — the credit line was added in a later issue. US Scribner's 1940 is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing has the 'A' with 1940 imprint and the first-issue dust jacket WITHOUT the photographer's credit ('Photograph by...') on the rear flap — the credit line was added in a later issue
- Some first-issue jackets show the publisher's printed price
- Publisher imprint reads Charles Scribner's Sons
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Ernest Hemingway |
| Publisher | Charles Scribner's Sons |
| Year | 1940 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing has the 'A' with 1940 imprint and the first-issue dust jacket WITHOUT the photographer's credit ('Photograph by...') on the… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First printing has the 'A' with 1940 imprint and the first-issue dust jacket WITHOUT the photographer's credit ('Photograph by...') on the rear flap — the credit line was added in a later issue. Some first-issue jackets show the publisher's printed price.

## Is this the true first?
US Scribner's 1940 is the true first. The point of issue is the absence of the back-flap photo credit; this is the most-confused Hemingway jacket point.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club editions lack the 'A' and have blind-stamp; jackets with the photo credit are later issue, not first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *For Whom the Bell Tolls* by Ernest Hemingway a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/for-whom-the-bell-tolls
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.