Is My Growth of the Soil a First Edition?

The points of issue

• True first is the Norwegian 'Markens Grøde' (Gyldendalske Boghandel, Kristiania, 1917), issued in two volumes
• The first edition in English, translated by W. W. Worster, was published by Gyldendal in London in 1920 (dated 27 April 1920) as a single octavo volume in grass-green cloth/boards lettered in black, 406 pp.; this London 1920 printing is the true first in English and precedes the first American
• Alfred A. Knopf issued the first American in New York in 1921 in two volumes (copyright dated 25 February 1921), bound in navy-blue cloth lettered in red with red/green border decoration
• Multiple independent ABAA descriptions (Bauman, Mullen, Doull) confirm the London 1920 issue precedes the Knopf 1921 issue

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

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 American 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?

Original-language true first is the Norwegian 'Markens Grøde' (Kristiania, 1917, 2 vols). Among English editions the London Gyldendal 1920 (Worster) is the true first and precedes the New York Knopf 1921 first American — the reverse of the usual US/UK sequence, driven by Hamsun's 1920 Nobel Prize; both the London 1920 single volume and the Knopf 1921 two-volume set are collected.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Some copies of the Gyldendal London printing are catalogued as 1921; the 27 April 1920 issue is the first English. The Worster translation was reprinted repeatedly by Knopf (later single-volume and subsequent impressions) — these retain the text but lack the 1920 London / two-volume 1921 Knopf points. No prominent book-club issue is documented for the first English.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Growth of the Soil a first edition?

A first edition of Growth of the Soil by Knut Hamsun (Gyldendal) is identified by: True first is the Norwegian 'Markens Grøde' (Gyldendalske Boghandel, Kristiania, 1917), issued in two volumes.

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. Original-language true first is the Norwegian 'Markens Grøde' (Kristiania, 1917, 2 vols).

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

Some copies of the Gyldendal London printing are catalogued as 1921; the 27 April 1920 issue is the first English. The Worster translation was reprinted repeatedly by Knopf (later single-volume and subsequent impressions) — these retain the text but lack the 1920 London / two-volume 1921 Knopf points. No prominent book-club issue is documented for the first English.

I have a first edition of Growth of the Soil — 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.