Is My Copy of Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First edition in English (copyright page stated 'First edition, 1991'; dealers also style it the 'First American edition'), translated by Alfred Birnbaum
• Published by Kodansha International, New York (ISBN 4-7700-1544-5)
• The first printing is identified by the copyright-page statement 'First edition, 1991' followed by a printer's key counting down to 1 (10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1, preceded by the year codes 91 92 93)
• Issued in quarter black cloth over magenta (dark-mauve) paper-covered boards stamped in silver, with illustrated endpapers, in a pictorial dust jacket (price present at the flap)
• Collates 400 pages

How Kodansha International marked a first edition

• c.1990–2011: many later KI titles use a descending number line on the copyright page (lowest digit, typically '1', = first printing) together with a 'First published <year> by Kodansha International' statement and a…

Full Kodansha International 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 UK 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?

The Kodansha International edition of 1991 (New York) is the first edition in English; the UK edition (Hamish Hamilton, London) followed, also in 1991. The Japanese original, Sekai no owari to hado-boirudo wandarando, was published in 1985 and won the Tanizaki Prize that year. It is Murakami's fourth novel and the second published in English for the trade (after A Wild Sheep Chase).P-036748

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Later Vintage International paperbacks are reprints. Confirm the 'First edition, 1991' statement with the full 10-to-1 number line, the quarter-black-cloth binding over magenta boards, and ISBN 4-7700-1544-5.P-036749

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World a first edition?

A first edition of Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami (Kodansha International) is identified by: First edition in English (copyright page stated 'First edition, 1991'; dealers also style it the 'First American edition'), translated by Alfred Birnbaum.

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). The Kodansha International edition of 1991 (New York) is the first edition in English; the UK edition (Hamish Hamilton, London) followed, also in 1991.

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

Later Vintage International paperbacks are reprints. Confirm the 'First edition, 1991' statement with the full 10-to-1 number line, the quarter-black-cloth binding over magenta boards, and ISBN 4-7700-1544-5.

I have a first edition of Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

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.