Is My Jackanapes a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Ewing's story had appeared in Aunt Judy's Magazine in 1879, but its first separate book publication, with new illustrations by Randolph Caldecott, came from the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) in 1884
• The first edition is 47 pages, bound in tan paper-covered boards with a grey cloth spine, the front cover printed in black, brown, red and blue
• First-issue copies have the word 'Egad' as the final word on page 27 (later printings substitute 'why'), and the frontispiece carries the page reference 'p
• 39' at its foot

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

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. 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.
5. 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.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

SPCK kept Jackanapes in print for decades from the same 1884 setting (a surviving Internet Archive copy is marked the 'eightieth thousand' printing), so the binding alone will not establish a first printing; only 'Egad' at the foot of page 27 and the frontispiece's 'p. 39' reference do.P-035386

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Jackanapes a first edition?

A first edition of Jackanapes by Juliana Horatia Ewing (Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge) is identified by: Ewing's story had appeared in Aunt Judy's Magazine in 1879, but its first separate book publication, with new illustrations by Randolph Caldecott, came from the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) in 1884.

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.

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

SPCK kept Jackanapes in print for decades from the same 1884 setting (a surviving Internet Archive copy is marked the 'eightieth thousand' printing), so the binding alone will not establish a first printing; only 'Egad' at the foot of page 27 and the frontispiece's 'p. 39' reference do.

I have a first edition of Jackanapes — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

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.