Is My Harold and the Purple Crayon a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first is the 1955 Harper & Brothers edition
• The copyright page reads 'Harper & Brothers' (not the later 'Harper & Row' or 'HarperCollins'), with copyright 1955 and Library of Congress catalog card number 55-7683
• The first-issue dust jacket carries the original printed price and the publisher flap codes (a 'No
• 5671A'-style code at the foot of the front flap and a corresponding code on the rear flap)
• The book has no free endpapers: the half-title is the first leaf and the page where Harold falls asleep is the last

How Harper & Brothers marked a first edition

• From 1922: also began printing 'First Edition' on the copyright page in addition to the code.
• Letter code discontinued after 1949; later Harper & Row used standard statements/number lines.

Full Harper & Brothers first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. 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.
3. Verify this is the US true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
4. 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.
5. 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 Harper & Brothers 1955 is the true first; the 'Harper & Brothers' imprint and 1955 copyright are the principal dating points. Crockett Johnson is the pen name of David Johnson Leisk.P-005367

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Later printings show the 'Harper & Row' imprint and a later copyright date; book-club copies carry a blind-stamp and lack the original printed jacket price.P-005368

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Harold and the Purple Crayon a first edition?

A first edition of Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson (Harper & Brothers) is identified by: The true first is the 1955 Harper & Brothers edition.

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. US Harper & Brothers 1955 is the true first; the 'Harper & Brothers' imprint and 1955 copyright are the principal dating points.

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

Later printings show the 'Harper & Row' imprint and a later copyright date; book-club copies carry a blind-stamp and lack the original printed jacket price.

I have a first edition of Harold and the Purple Crayon — 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.