# Is "House of Meetings" by Martin Amis a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of House of Meetings by Martin Amis (Jonathan Cape, 2006) is identified by: Novel, first published by Jonathan Cape, London, September 2006. The UK Jonathan Cape edition (2006) precedes the US Knopf edition (2007), making Cape the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Novel, first published by Jonathan Cape, London, September 2006
- Bound in black cloth boards stamped in silver on the spine, with red endpapers, and issued in a pictorial dust jacket that carries its printed UK price on the front flap (an unclipped jacket shows the price)
- Copyright page carries a full descending number line ending in 1 with no impression statement
- Publisher imprint reads Jonathan Cape
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Martin Amis |
| Publisher | Jonathan Cape |
| Year | 2006 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Novel, first published by Jonathan Cape, London, September 2006 |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Novel, first published by Jonathan Cape, London, September 2006. Bound in black cloth boards stamped in silver on the spine, with red endpapers, and issued in a pictorial dust jacket that carries its printed UK price on the front flap (an unclipped jacket shows the price). Copyright page carries a full descending number line ending in 1 with no impression statement.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Jonathan Cape edition (2006) precedes the US Knopf edition (2007), making Cape the true first. The Canadian Knopf Canada issue also dates to 2006 but the London Cape printing is the accepted first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later impressions add a printed impression number to the copyright page; the first prints a complete descending number line ending in 1 and no such statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *House of Meetings* by Martin Amis a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/house-of-meetings
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.