# Is "Ginger Pye" by Eleanor Estes a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes (Harcourt, Brace & Company, 1951) is identified by: First edition 1951, Harcourt, Brace and Company (New York), title page dated 1951. US true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition 1951, Harcourt, Brace and Company (New York), title page dated 1951
- The first printing is identified by the words First Edition stated on the copyright page, with no later-printing notice
- Black-and-white illustrations by the author, original cloth boards
- Publisher imprint reads Harcourt, Brace & Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Eleanor Estes |
| Publisher | Harcourt, Brace & Company |
| Year | 1951 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | First edition 1951, Harcourt, Brace and Company (New York), title page dated 1951 |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First edition 1951, Harcourt, Brace and Company (New York), title page dated 1951. The first printing is identified by the words First Edition stated on the copyright page, with no later-printing notice. Black-and-white illustrations by the author, original cloth boards.

## Is this the true first?
US true first. Author Eleanor Estes. Awarded the Newbery Medal in 1952.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Harcourt removed the First Edition statement on later printings, so a copy lacking that statement or carrying a later-printing line is a reprint. Note: the Harcourt single-letter printing code (the A/B/C letter line) was not introduced until the early 1980s and does not apply to a 1951 title.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Ginger Pye* by Eleanor Estes a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/ginger-pye
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.