Is My Jonah's Gourd Vine a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Bound in publisher's pale green cloth stamped in black
• 316 pp; with an introduction by Fannie Hurst
• Lippincott's practice from roughly 1925 was inconsistent about printing a first-edition statement but consistent about always noting later printings (often called "impressions") on the copyright page — so the first-printing test here is a copyright page free of any impression or printing statement
• The pictorial dust jacket depicts scenes from the novel and carries a Carl Van Vechten blurb; the jacket is very scarce and a priced jacket with the price present at the flap is the unclipped state
• The green cloth is markedly light-sensitive: faded spines and sunned topstains are ubiquitous and are condition traits, not printing points
• Caveat: the exact copyright-page wording of the first printing could not be confirmed against a second independent source, so rely on the absence of an impression statement rather than on any expected positive statement

How J. B. Lippincott marked a first edition

• From ~1925: printed 'First Edition' on the copyright page of books deemed important; novels and children's books often NOT so marked.
• Reliably indicated later printings ('Second Printing', 'Third Printing', etc.), so absence of a later-printing notice is a key signal for the unmarked titles.

Full J. B. Lippincott 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?

The true first is the US edition: J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, 1934 — Hurston's first novel. A London Duckworth 1934 issue is recorded in reference bibliography, but that record could not be corroborated against a second independent source and its priority relative to Lippincott is not established; treat the Lippincott as the true first and any Duckworth copy as the British issue.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No contemporaneous book-club issue is documented in the sources consulted. Later collected reprints are plainly stated and pose no confusion (G. K. Hall 1971; Perennial Library 1987; HarperCollins/Harper Perennial from 1990; Virago in the UK from 1998; a Quality Paperback Book Club omnibus of 1990 pairs the novel with Mules and Men and Their Eyes Were Watching God).

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Jonah's Gourd Vine a first edition?

A first edition of Jonah's Gourd Vine by Zora Neale Hurston (J. B. Lippincott) is identified by: Bound in publisher's pale green cloth stamped in black; 8vo; 316 pp; with an introduction by Fannie Hurst.

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. The true first is the US edition: J.

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

No contemporaneous book-club issue is documented in the sources consulted. Later collected reprints are plainly stated and pose no confusion (G. K. Hall 1971; Perennial Library 1987; HarperCollins/Harper Perennial from 1990; Virago in the UK from 1998; a Quality Paperback Book Club omnibus of 1990 pairs the novel with Mules and Men and Their Eyes Were Watching God).

I have a first edition of Jonah's Gourd Vine — 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.