Is My Gather Together in My Name a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First printing: the copyright page carries the statement "First Edition" together with Random House's full number line 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
• The line correctly ends in 2, NOT 1 — a line ending in 2 is house practice for this publisher and is not evidence of a second printing
• Binding is orange cloth (some dealers describe the shade as red), gilt-stamped lettering to the spine, with the author's initials stamped as a monogram in copper/red to the front board
• Pictorial jacket designed by Janet Halverson, price present at the flap (unclipped), with the code "5/74" printed at the lower left of the rear flap corresponding to the May 1974 publication, and five review blurbs to the rear panel (James Baldwin, John O. Killens, Robert A. Gross, The New York Times, Cleveland Plain Dealer)

How Random House, New York marked a first edition

• Stated-edition era (c.1936–1975): trade first printings are plainly marked with the words 'First Edition' (or, on some earlier titles, 'First Printing') on the copyright page, with NO number line yet in use; a copyright…
• Classic paradox era (c.1970–2002/03) — THE famous Random House rule: a true first printing states 'First Edition' AND carries a number line whose lowest digit is 2 — the line ENDS (or begins) in 2 and NEVER reaches 1, e.…

Full Random House, New York 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. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
4. Verify this is the US 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?

US Random House (New York, 1974) is the true first — the census claim holds. No UK-vs-US or original-language precedence question arises: an American book by an American author, first published in the United States, and the American issue is the only edition collected as the first. The census note is also correct that this is the second volume of Angelou's autobiographical sequence, following I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Random House, 1969).

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Random House's own convention supplies the decisive reprint tell: subsequent printings REMOVE the "First Edition" statement while retaining the number line, so a copy showing the number line with no "First Edition" statement above it is a later printing. No book-club edition is specifically documented for this title; the general Random House-era club tells (reduced trim, thinner bulk, blind-stamped device to the rear board, jacket with no price at the flap) are offered only as the house pattern and are not confirmed for this book.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Gather Together in My Name a first edition?

A first edition of Gather Together in My Name by Maya Angelou (Random House, New York) is identified by: First printing: the copyright page carries the statement "First Edition" together with Random House's full number line 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). US Random House (New York, 1974) is the true first — the census claim holds.

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

Random House's own convention supplies the decisive reprint tell: subsequent printings REMOVE the "First Edition" statement while retaining the number line, so a copy showing the number line with no "First Edition" statement above it is a later printing. No book-club edition is specifically documented for this title; the general Random House-era club tells (reduced trim, thinner bulk, blind-stamped device to the rear board, jacket with no price at the flap) are offered only as the house pattern

I have a first edition of Gather Together in My Name — 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.