# Is "H.M. Pulham, Esquire" by John P. Marquand a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of H.M. Pulham, Esquire by John P. Marquand (Little, Brown and Company, 1941) is identified by: Two early states exist: a presentation issue of about 950 copies preceding general sale, and the trade first printing with the copyright-page statement Published February, 1941 and no later-printing notice. US Little, Brown edition (1941) is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Two early states exist: a presentation issue of about 950 copies preceding general sale, and the trade first printing with the copyright-page statement Published February, 1941 and no later-printing notice
- The trade first is the one most collectors record as the first edition
- Publisher imprint reads Little, Brown and Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John P. Marquand |
| Publisher | Little, Brown and Company |
| Year | 1941 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Two early states exist: a presentation issue of about 950 copies preceding general sale, and the trade first printing with the… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Two early states exist: a presentation issue of about 950 copies preceding general sale, and the trade first printing with the copyright-page statement Published February, 1941 and no later-printing notice. The trade first is the one most collectors record as the first edition.

## Is this the true first?
US Little, Brown edition (1941) is the true first. The first British edition, from Robert Hale in 1942, was also titled H.M. Pulham, Esquire. The title Gone Tomorrow was only the magazine-serial title used in McCall's, not a separate book title.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A Book-of-the-Month Club edition exists, identifiable by the board blind-stamp and the absence of the first-printing statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *H.M. Pulham, Esquire* by John P. Marquand a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/hm-pulham-esquire
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.