# Is "High Fidelity" by Nick Hornby a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (Victor Gollancz, 1995) is identified by: First edition, Victor Gollancz (London) 1995: navy/dark-blue paper boards with gilt spine lettering, 253 pp. UK Gollancz (London) 1995 is the true first and precedes the US Riverhead (New York) 1995 edition; both are collected, with the Gollancz hardback the world first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, Victor Gollancz (London) 1995: navy/dark-blue paper boards with gilt spine lettering, 253 pp
- The first printing carries a complete number line falling to '1' (10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1); a line not ending in 1 signals a later Gollancz impression
- The pictorial dust jacket shows a price at the flap (price-clipped copies exist)
- High Fidelity was Hornby's first novel, following the 1992 memoir Fever Pitch
- Publisher imprint reads Victor Gollancz
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Nick Hornby |
| Publisher | Victor Gollancz |
| Year | 1995 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, Victor Gollancz (London) 1995: navy/dark-blue paper boards with gilt spine lettering, 253 pp |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition, Victor Gollancz (London) 1995: navy/dark-blue paper boards with gilt spine lettering, 253 pp. The first printing carries a complete number line falling to '1' (10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1); a line not ending in 1 signals a later Gollancz impression. The pictorial dust jacket shows a price at the flap (price-clipped copies exist). High Fidelity was Hornby's first novel, following the 1992 memoir Fever Pitch.

## Is this the true first?
UK Gollancz (London) 1995 is the true first and precedes the US Riverhead (New York) 1995 edition; both are collected, with the Gollancz hardback the world first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book Club Associates (BCA) hardbacks of the period exist; distinguish the Gollancz first by the full number line ending in 1 and the priced Gollancz jacket. A number line lacking the 1 indicates a later impression, not a first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *High Fidelity* by Nick Hornby a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/high-fidelity
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.