Is My Letting Go a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The first printing states 'First Printing' on the copyright page
• The first-issue jacket carries the date code '6/62' on the front flap alongside the price (price present at the flap; unclipped flaps are wanted precisely because the code sits with it) — a clipped flap destroys the issue point as well as the price
• Bound in blue cloth-covered boards backed in black cloth, with gilt-stamped spine titling and lavender/purple decoration to the spine, the author's initials blind-stamped to the front board, and a faded pink topstain
• The rear jacket panel bears Nancy Sirkis's photographic portrait of Roth

How Random House, New York marked a first edition

• Stated-edition era (c.1936–1975): trade first printings are plainly marked with the words 'First Edition' (or, on some earlier titles, 'First Printing') on the copyright page, with NO number line yet in use; a copyright…
• Divisional practice — share the STATEMENT, not the '2'-line: sister divisions state 'First Edition' as their firsts (Alfred A. Knopf consistently since 1933–34; Pantheon since 1964), so the words work across the family.…

Full Random House, New York 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 Random House, New York, 1962 is the true first and the edition collected — the census claim is correct. Roth's first full-length novel, following the Goodbye, Columbus collection. The first British edition is André Deutsch, London, 1962; it follows the US issue and is collected only as the UK first, not as a co-first. Note the 'first thus' trap of the Library of America Novels and Stories 1959-1962 volume, which reprints Letting Go and is sometimes offered as a first.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club issue is specifically documented for this title in the sources consulted. The decisive tells remain positive ones: absence of 'First Printing' on the copyright page marks a later printing, and dealers list 'First Edition, Fourth Printing' copies of this title, so the copyright-page statement must be read rather than inferred from the 1962 date.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Letting Go a first edition?

A first edition of Letting Go by Philip Roth (Random House, New York) is identified by: The first printing states 'First Printing' on the copyright page.

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 Random House, New York, 1962 is the true first and the edition collected — the census claim is correct.

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

No book-club issue is specifically documented for this title in the sources consulted. The decisive tells remain positive ones: absence of 'First Printing' on the copyright page marks a later printing, and dealers list 'First Edition, Fourth Printing' copies of this title, so the copyright-page statement must be read rather than inferred from the 1962 date.

I have a first edition of Letting Go — 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.