Is My Copy of Ishi in Two Worlds a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First printing: University of California Press, Berkeley (and Los Angeles), 1961; subtitled "A Biography of the Last Wild Indian in North America," with a foreword by Lewis Gannett
• The decisive point is NEGATIVE and this title is a notorious trap: UC Press retained the 1961 title-page date across dozens of printings and stated each subsequent printing on the copyright page — recorded examples read "Second Printing, November, 1961" and "Fifteenth Printing, 1973." A first printing is therefore a copy whose copyright page carries the 1961 Regents of the University of California copyright and NO printing line at all
• Dealers routinely and correctly list later copies as "1961 First Edition, 23rd Printing" or "Printing 30"; the 1961 date alone proves nothing
• The binding (tan/beige/cream cloth lettered and decorated in brick red, with repeating Yahi-motif endpapers) is constant across early printings and is NOT a printing point
• On a jacketed copy an unclipped jacket with the price present at the flap is consistent with an early issue but does not by itself establish the first printing
• No first-state text errors are documented in the sources consulted

How University of California Press marked a first edition

• First printings state 'First Edition' or carry the copyright line alone with no later-printing notice; subsequent printings/editions are noted on the copyright page.
• Modern UC Press titles use a number line on the copyright page; '1' present = first printing.

Full University of California Press 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. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
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?

US university-press first; University of California Press, 1961 — Berkeley and Los Angeles on the original imprint. No separately set British first is documented in the sources consulted; UC Press's own later printings add a London line to the imprint, which is the Press's British office address, not a distinct UK edition. Distinct work, not an edition of this book: Kroeber's 1964 children's retelling "Ishi, Last of His Tribe" (Parnassus Press, illustrated by Ruth Robbins) — a different book, frequently conflated with this one in listings.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club issue documented. Reprint tells: any printing line on the copyright page; the presence of an ISBN (0-520-00675-5), which postdates the 1961 first and so rules it out on sight; and the paperback and 50th Anniversary Edition (2011, with added material by Karl Kroeber) — "first thus" or later at best.P-043399

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Ishi in Two Worlds a first edition?

A first edition of Ishi in Two Worlds by Theodora Kroeber (University of California Press) is identified by: First printing: University of California Press, Berkeley (and Los Angeles), 1961; subtitled "A Biography of the Last Wild Indian in North America," with a foreword by Lewis Gannett.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. US university-press first; University of California Press, 1961 — Berkeley and Los Angeles on the original imprint.

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

No book-club issue documented. Reprint tells: any printing line on the copyright page; the presence of an ISBN (0-520-00675-5), which postdates the 1961 first and so rules it out on sight; and the paperback and 50th Anniversary Edition (2011, with added material by Karl Kroeber) — "first thus" or later at best.

I have a first edition of Ishi in Two Worlds — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

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.