Is My Mr. Popper's Penguins a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Little, Brown and Company, Boston, September 1938; octavo, 139 pages, illustrated by Robert Lawson with full-page duotone plates and in-text vignettes
• First-printing point: the copyright page states 'Published September 1938' and carries no reprint line
• This follows Little, Brown's 1930s house practice — 'Published [month] [year]' on firsts, subsequent printings noted (Quill & Brush
• ILAB) — and is confirmed by independent dealers quoting the line verbatim (Grendel Books
• Mark Henderson)
• Later printings add a dated reprint statement in the same position: 'Reprinted October 1938' is the second printing, 'Reprinted August 1943' the ninth

How Little, Brown and Company marked a first edition

• 1930s: the house began stating 'Published [Month] [Year]' (e.g., 'Published September 1934') on the copyright page of a first edition, with no reference to an additional printing. On a genuine first this dated 'Published…
• Time Inc. / Time Warner corporate era (Time Inc. bought L,B 1968; Time Warner Book Group from 1989; editorial/HQ moved from Boston to New York in 2001): the number-line-must-contain-1 rule holds throughout. Imprint on th…

Full Little, Brown and Company first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. 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.
3. Verify this is the US true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
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.

Is this the true first?

US true first — Little, Brown and Company, Boston, 1938. The first British edition followed from George G. Harrap (London, 1939), in blue cloth; it is collected in the UK but is a first thus and does not carry precedence. Both editions are collected; only the Little, Brown 1938 is the true first. Robert Lawson's own key titles sit apart and have their own firsts: The Story of Ferdinand (Viking, New York, 1936, text by Munro Leaf) and Rabbit Hill (Viking, New York, 1944).

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The dominant trap is volume of reprinting: the book ran to the 37th, the printed pricet and 50th printings and beyond, all retaining the 1938 copyright date, which is why copies are routinely advertised as 'first edition, 37th printing.' Read the reprint line, not the date. Jacket copy is a corroborating tell — later jackets carry accumulated review snippets, a higher flap price, and advertise the 1939 Newbery Honor. A widely-circulated student bibliographic page describing a 'Forty-first Printing' copyright page and a the original price jacket is describing a late reprint and should not be treated as a first-edition description.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Mr. Popper's Penguins a first edition?

A first edition of Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater (illus. Robert Lawson) (Little, Brown and Company) is identified by: Little, Brown and Company, Boston, September 1938; octavo, 139 pages, illustrated by Robert Lawson with full-page duotone plates and in-text vignettes.

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 true first — Little, Brown and Company, Boston, 1938.

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

The dominant trap is volume of reprinting: the book ran to the 37th, the printed pricet and 50th printings and beyond, all retaining the 1938 copyright date, which is why copies are routinely advertised as 'first edition, 37th printing.' Read the reprint line, not the date. Jacket copy is a corroborating tell — later jackets carry accumulated review snippets, a higher flap price, and advertise the 1939 Newbery Honor. A widely-circulated student bibliographic page describing a 'Forty-first Printi

I have a first edition of Mr. Popper's Penguins — 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.