The points of issue
National Poetry Series selection (chosen by Philip Levine). Issued in cloth and in wrappers; first printing on the copyright page. Wrappers ISBN 0252063171 (ISBN-13 9780252063176). The University of Illinois Press markets the cloth as the first cloth edition; the cloth issue is the collector's preferred form. US true first precedes the UK Jonathan Cape edition (ISBN 0224041282 / 9780224041287).
Is this the true first?
US Illinois true first (1993); the UK Jonathan Cape edition is later. My Alexandria won the National Book Critics Circle Award, was a 1993 National Book Award finalist, and won the UK's T. S. Eliot Prize (1995). Cloth is the collector's first; softcover is a simultaneous true-first issue.
Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The UK Cape edition is a later first-thus, not the true first; later printing statements indicate reprints.
Frequently asked questions
Is my copy of My Alexandria a first edition?
Look for these first-edition points: National Poetry Series selection (chosen by Philip Levine). Issued in cloth and in wrappers; first printing on the copyright page. Wrappers ISBN 0252063171 (ISBN-13 9780252063176). The University of Illinois Press markets the cloth as the first cloth edition; the cloth issue is the collector's preferred form. US true first precedes the UK Jonathan Cape edition (ISBN 0224041282 / 9780224041287).
How do I tell the first printing from a later one?
Check the copyright page for the publisher's first-printing convention and confirm the points above. US Illinois true first (1993); the UK Jonathan Cape edition is later. My Alexandria won the National Book Critics Circle Award, was a 1993 National Book Award finalist, and won the UK's T. S. Eliot Prize (1995). Cloth is the collector's first; softcover is a simultaneous true-first issue.
Is the book-club edition the same as the first?
The UK Cape edition is a later first-thus, not the true first; later printing statements indicate reprints.
I have a first edition of My Alexandria — what should I do?
If you're clearing books, New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup in Albuquerque, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies aren't lost. To sell, see the author's collecting guide. Either way, nothing valuable ends up in a landfill.