# Is "How the Dead Live" by Will Self a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of How the Dead Live by Will Self (Bloomsbury, 2000) is identified by: Black cloth lettered in silver to the spine; pictorial/illustrated endpapers; full number line 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1. The UK Bloomsbury edition of 2000 is the true first, preceding the US Grove Press edition (also 2000).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Black cloth lettered in silver to the spine; pictorial/illustrated endpapers; full number line 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
- Photographic dust jacket designed by Michael Wildsmith, retaining its printed price on the front flap
- 404 pages
- Publisher imprint reads Bloomsbury
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Will Self |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury |
| Year | 2000 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Black cloth lettered in silver to the spine; pictorial/illustrated endpapers; full number line 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Black cloth lettered in silver to the spine; pictorial/illustrated endpapers; full number line 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1. Photographic dust jacket designed by Michael Wildsmith, retaining its printed price on the front flap. 404 pages.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Bloomsbury edition of 2000 is the true first, preceding the US Grove Press edition (also 2000).

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later impressions add an impression statement or drop the 1 from the number line.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *How the Dead Live* by Will Self a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/how-the-dead-live
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.