Is My My Name Is Legion a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Ballantine Books mass-market paperback original, first printing April 1976; 'First Edition' so stated on the copyright page, with the Ballantine catalog number 24867 on the spine and cover (issued as a paperback original, PBO #24867)
• Linked story collection, 213 pages; cover art by the Brothers Hildebrandt
• As a paperback original the first printing carries no later-printing statement on the copyright page

How Ballantine/Del Rey marked a first edition

• Number line on copyright page; first printing has the '1' present. Modern PRH-era Ballantine uses the full descending line '9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1' with no edition statement, OR with 'First Edition' stated.

Full Ballantine/Del Rey 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. 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?

The April 1976 Ballantine paperback original is the true first edition; the first hardcover (Faber & Faber, London) did not appear until 1979 and is a later form.P-028228

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Not applicable; paperback original, no book-club edition. Later Ballantine/Del Rey printings carry a higher print-line number or added printing statement and a later catalog number.P-028229

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of My Name Is Legion a first edition?

A first edition of My Name Is Legion by Roger Zelazny (Ballantine/Del Rey) is identified by: Ballantine Books mass-market paperback original, first printing April 1976; 'First Edition' so stated on the copyright page, with the Ballantine catalog number 24867 on the spine and cover (issued as a paperback original, PBO #24867).

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. The April 1976 Ballantine paperback original is the true first edition; the first hardcover (Faber & Faber, London) did not appear until 1979 and is a later form.

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

Not applicable; paperback original, no book-club edition. Later Ballantine/Del Rey printings carry a higher print-line number or added printing statement and a later catalog number.

I have a first edition of My Name Is Legion — 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.