# Is "Mr. Moto Is So Sorry" by John P. Marquand a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Mr. Moto Is So Sorry by John P. Marquand (Little, Brown and Company, 1938) is identified by: True first is the US Little, Brown printing, with the copyright-page statement Published August, 1938 and no later-printing notice. US Little, Brown edition (1938) is the true first; the first British edition followed from Robert Hale in 1939.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the US Little, Brown printing, with the copyright-page statement Published August, 1938 and no later-printing notice
- This is the fourth Mr
- Moto novel; the original binding is green cloth lettered in red on spine and front cover
- Publisher imprint reads Little, Brown and Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John P. Marquand |
| Publisher | Little, Brown and Company |
| Year | 1938 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first is the US Little, Brown printing, with the copyright-page statement Published August, 1938 and no later-printing notice |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
True first is the US Little, Brown printing, with the copyright-page statement Published August, 1938 and no later-printing notice. This is the fourth Mr. Moto novel; the original binding is green cloth lettered in red on spine and front cover.

## Is this the true first?
US Little, Brown edition (1938) is the true first; the first British edition followed from Robert Hale in 1939.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later printings are reprints, not the first edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Mr. Moto Is So Sorry* by John P. Marquand a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/mr-moto-is-so-sorry
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.