Is My Grendel a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1971 (trade listings give publication as August 1971)
• First printing: 'First Edition' is STATED on the copyright page — this is a stated-first house, so the statement is the primary point and its absence disqualifies
• Collation 174, [6] pp, octavo (some dealers collate [x], 174, [4])
• Publisher's purple cloth stamped in gilt, with a purple topstain
• Illustrated throughout with line drawings by Emil Antonucci, used as frontispiece and chapter headings
• Pictorial jacket, price present at the flap; one dealer records a 9/71 date code on the jacket — that is a single-source observation and should be treated as indicative, not as a required point

How Alfred A. Knopf, New York marked a first edition

• c.1970s onward (number-line era, added ALONGSIDE the words — it did not replace them): later Knopf firsts also carry a descending numeric printer's key (often with a manufacturing/printer code). A first printing shows th…

Full Alfred A. Knopf, 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. 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 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?

TRUE FIRST IS US — census claim confirmed. Alfred A. Knopf (New York, 1971) precedes; André Deutsch (London) issued the first UK edition in 1972 (ISBN 0-233-96342-1), in orange cloth lettered in gilt, retaining Antonucci's frontispiece, chapter-heading drawings and his Grendel's-head jacket design. The Deutsch is collected as the first British edition, not the first. A caution on cataloguing: at least one database record dates the Deutsch to 1971, which conflicts with the imprint and with dealer consensus — verify the title-page and copyright-page year on any 'Deutsch 1971' copy offered as a first.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No Grendel-specific book-club variant is separately documented in the sources consulted, so no title-level tell can be asserted. The general Knopf-era book-club tells apply and should be checked: the copyright page lacks the 'First Edition' statement, the rear board carries a blind-stamped depression (circle, dot or square) near the lower corner, the jacket carries no price at the flap, and the bulk is smaller and lighter on thinner paper than the trade issue.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Grendel a first edition?

A first edition of Grendel by John Gardner (Alfred A. Knopf, New York) is identified by: Knopf, New York, 1971 (trade listings give publication as August 1971).

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. TRUE FIRST IS US — census claim confirmed.

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

No Grendel-specific book-club variant is separately documented in the sources consulted, so no title-level tell can be asserted. The general Knopf-era book-club tells apply and should be checked: the copyright page lacks the 'First Edition' statement, the rear board carries a blind-stamped depression (circle, dot or square) near the lower corner, the jacket carries no price at the flap, and the bulk is smaller and lighter on thinner paper than the trade issue.

I have a first edition of Grendel — 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.