Is My Harvest Home a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Knopf first printings state "First Edition" on the copyright page with no accompanying reprint or later-printing line; the presence of that bare statement, unqualified, is the operative test
• This follows Knopf house practice — consistent since 1933–34 — of stating "First Edition" on first printings and noting every subsequent printing, so later impressions of Harvest Home carry a reprint statement ("Second Printing," "Third Printing," etc.) and are frequently offered as "First Edition
• Third Printing." Knopf used the statement rather than a number line in 1973, so no number line should be expected or looked for
• Octavo, 401 pages, issued in cloth with gilt spine lettering and a toned top edge
• The jacket should be a priced jacket with the price present at the front flap
• No first-state textual error is recorded for this title in dealer or reference descriptions — do not invent one

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. 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 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?

The true first is the US edition: Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1973. The census precedence note is WRONG on the UK side: there is no Heinemann edition. The first UK edition was published by Hodder & Stoughton, London, dated 1974 (recorded publication 4 February 1974), in green boards with gilt spine lettering and a green top edge, 401pp — roughly a year after Knopf, so it holds no precedence. Both the Knopf 1973 first and the Hodder & Stoughton 1974 first UK edition are collected, the Knopf being the true first. Later Coronet/Fawcett paperbacks and reissues are "first thus" traps, not firsts.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

A Book Club Edition was issued under the same Knopf imprint and 1973 title page, which is the trap — the title page alone does not distinguish it. BCE tells: the jacket is printed without a price at the flap (an unpriced jacket, not a clipped one), a blind stamp / small embossed device is present on the lower rear board, and the book is bulked on lighter stock with a slightly smaller trim than the trade first. Many BCE jackets also state "Book Club Edition" on the flap. A BCE never carries a genuine priced jacket.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Harvest Home a first edition?

A first edition of Harvest Home by Thomas Tryon (Alfred A. Knopf, New York) is identified by: Knopf first printings state "First Edition" on the copyright page with no accompanying reprint or later-printing line; the presence of that bare statement, unqualified, is the operative test.

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 true first is the US edition: Alfred A.

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

A Book Club Edition was issued under the same Knopf imprint and 1973 title page, which is the trap — the title page alone does not distinguish it. BCE tells: the jacket is printed without a price at the flap (an unpriced jacket, not a clipped one), a blind stamp / small embossed device is present on the lower rear board, and the book is bulked on lighter stock with a slightly smaller trim than the trade first. Many BCE jackets also state "Book Club Edition" on the flap. A BCE never carries a gen

I have a first edition of Harvest Home — 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.