# Is "Junk (US title: Smack)" by Melvin Burgess a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Junk (US title: Smack) by Melvin Burgess (Andersen Press, 1996) is identified by: UK Andersen Press first printing, published in hardback in 1996 (ISBN 0862646324 / 9780862646325), with a number line counting down to 1; the true-first jacket bears NO Carnegie Medal or Guardian Children's Fiction Prize sticker, since both awards were made in 1996, the year of publication, and thus postdate the earliest jackets. The UK Andersen Press hardback of 1996, titled 'Junk', is the true first; the US Henry Holt edition retitled 'Smack' (1997/1998) is a separate first-American printing.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- UK Andersen Press first printing, published in hardback in 1996 (ISBN 0862646324 / 9780862646325), with a number line counting down to 1; the true-first jacket bears NO Carnegie Medal or Guardian Children's Fiction Prize sticker, since both awards were made in 1996, the year of publication, and thus postdate the earliest jackets
- Publisher imprint reads Andersen Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Melvin Burgess |
| Publisher | Andersen Press |
| Year | 1996 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | UK Andersen Press first printing, published in hardback in 1996 (ISBN 0862646324 / 9780862646325), with a number line counting down to 1… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
UK Andersen Press first printing, published in hardback in 1996 (ISBN 0862646324 / 9780862646325), with a number line counting down to 1; the true-first jacket bears NO Carnegie Medal or Guardian Children's Fiction Prize sticker, since both awards were made in 1996, the year of publication, and thus postdate the earliest jackets.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Andersen Press hardback of 1996, titled 'Junk', is the true first; the US Henry Holt edition retitled 'Smack' (1997/1998) is a separate first-American printing. The book won both the 1996 Carnegie Medal and the 1996 Guardian Children's Fiction Prize.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The US 'Smack' edition is not the true first; later UK printings add a Carnegie Medal (and later anniversary) sticker or wording to the jacket, and the 2016 Andersen reissue carries a distinct even/odd number line.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Junk (US title: Smack)* by Melvin Burgess a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/junk-us-title-smack
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.