# Is "My Father's Dragon" by Ruth Stiles Gannett (illus. Ruth Chrisman Gannett) a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett (illus. Ruth Chrisman Gannett) (Random House, 1948) is identified by: Random House, New York, 1948; small, thin octavo, 87 pages, with grey-scale drawings by the author's stepmother Ruth Chrisman Gannett and color map endpapers. US-only true first — Random House, New York, 1948.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Random House, New York, 1948; small, thin octavo, 87 pages, with grey-scale drawings by the author's stepmother Ruth Chrisman Gannett and color map endpapers
- Binding: yellow pictorial cloth boards stamped in dark green
- First-printing test on the copyright page: the 1948 date with the note of simultaneous publication in the United States and Canada, no statement of any later printing, and no Library of Congress number or ISBN. Jacket point: the first-issue jacket makes no mention of the Newbery Honor, which the book won in 1949 — later printings and reprint jackets advertise it, so a jacket touting the Honor is not a first (Burnside Rare Books, ABAA, corroborated by other dealer collations)
- Priced jacket, price present at the flap; surviving jackets are frequently price-clipped
- One caveat to weigh at the shelf: the standard publisher guides say Random House states 'First Edition' on first printings and does not mark later ones, whereas dealers in this title identify the first by the absence of a printing statement plus the jacket point — examine both
- Publisher imprint reads Random House
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Ruth Stiles Gannett (illus. Ruth Chrisman Gannett) |
| Publisher | Random House |
| Year | 1948 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | Random House, New York, 1948; small, thin octavo, 87 pages, with grey-scale drawings by the author's stepmother Ruth Chrisman Gannett and… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Random House, New York, 1948; small, thin octavo, 87 pages, with grey-scale drawings by the author's stepmother Ruth Chrisman Gannett and color map endpapers. Binding: yellow pictorial cloth boards stamped in dark green. First-printing test on the copyright page: the 1948 date with the note of simultaneous publication in the United States and Canada, no statement of any later printing, and no Library of Congress number or ISBN. Jacket point: the first-issue jacket makes no mention of the Newbery Honor, which the book won in 1949 — later printings and reprint jackets advertise it, so a jacket touting the Honor is not a first (Burnside Rare Books, ABAA, corroborated by other dealer collations). Priced jacket, price present at the flap; surviving jackets are frequently price-clipped. One caveat to weigh at the shelf: the standard publisher guides say Random House states 'First Edition' on first printings and does not mark later ones, whereas dealers in this title identify the first by the absence of a printing statement plus the jacket point — examine both.

## Is this the true first?
US-only true first — Random House, New York, 1948. There is no earlier UK or foreign-language edition; Gannett was American and Random House published first, with British and other editions following. The two sequels have their own Random House, New York firsts: Elmer and the Dragon (1950) and The Dragons of Blueland (1951). Omnibus 'Three Tales of My Father's Dragon' volumes are firsts thus, not firsts.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club and school-club issues are the documented trap: check for a club blind stamp or code on the rear board and reject Junior Literary Guild, Weekly Reader and Parents' Magazine club printings, none of which are the trade first. Modern Random House reprints state the printing with a number line and carry an ISBN. All later Random House hardcovers keep the 1948 copyright date, so the date is not a point.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *My Father's Dragon* by Ruth Stiles Gannett (illus. Ruth Chrisman Gannett) a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/my-fathers-dragon
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.