Is My Copy of Mystery Mile a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first is Jarrolds, London, 1930 — the Library of Congress catalogues it as "London, Jarrolds limited [1930]", the square brackets indicating the date is not printed on the title page, which matches the Classic Crime Fiction checklist's own bracketed [1930] for the Jarrolds titles
• The Classic Crime Fiction first-edition checklist records the binding as red cloth lettered in black with a priced jacket (price present at the flap); that binding description is single-sourced
• Jarrolds is not covered by the standard publisher-identification guides consulted, so identification rests on the undated title page together with the copyright page and the absence of any later-impression notice; there is no number line
• The first American edition is Doubleday, Doran, published for The Crime Club, Garden City, N.Y., 1930 — corroborated twice over by the Library of Congress record and by the Felony & Mayhem 2011 reprint's title-page verso, which states "First U.S. edition: 1930 (Doubleday Crime Club)"; under the Doubleday, Doran rule it states "First Edition" on the copyright page, with no statement on later printings

How Jarrolds marked a first edition

• About 1920 to about 1960: 'First published (year)' or 'First published in Great Britain (year)' on the copyright page; a first impression lists no reprints, while later printings add dated 'Reprinted' or 'New impression'…

Full Jarrolds 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. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
4. Verify this is the UK true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. 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.
6. 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?

UK precedes US. Jarrolds, London, January 1930 (month per the Margery Allingham Society) is the accepted true first; Doubleday, Doran for The Crime Club, Garden City, N.Y., 1930 is the first American edition and is collected in its own right. One residual: no source consulted gives a month for the US Crime Club issue, so UK precedence rests on the January 1930 UK date against an undated-within-year US issue rather than on two compared months. This is the second Albert Campion book (after The Crime at Black Dudley) and the first in which Campion leads; the title was not changed for the US market.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

On the US side the Doubleday/Crime Club book-club tells are the ones to check and are well documented: "Book Club Edition" printed at the foot of the front jacket flap or no price at the flap at all, a blind stamp debossed into the rear board near the spine, and a five-digit code in a white block on the jacket rear. Crime Club book-club copies are common for this title and are routinely offered as firsts. The Heinemann, London, 1966 issue and the Penguin/Felony & Mayhem issues are later reprints, not first editions.P-040411

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Mystery Mile a first edition?

A first edition of Mystery Mile by Margery Allingham (Jarrolds) is identified by: The true first is Jarrolds, London, 1930 — the Library of Congress catalogues it as "London, Jarrolds limited [1930]", the square brackets indicating the date is not printed on the title page, which matches the Classic Crime Fiction checklist's own bracketed [1930] for the Jarrolds titles.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). UK precedes US.

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

On the US side the Doubleday/Crime Club book-club tells are the ones to check and are well documented: "Book Club Edition" printed at the foot of the front jacket flap or no price at the flap at all, a blind stamp debossed into the rear board near the spine, and a five-digit code in a white block on the jacket rear. Crime Club book-club copies are common for this title and are routinely offered as firsts.

I have a first edition of Mystery Mile — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

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.