Is My Near Klamath a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Carver's first book: a slim collection of poems issued in stapled printed wrappers by the English Club of Sacramento State College, Sacramento, California, 1968, reported as red wraps printed in black
• There is no edition statement, number line, or printing notice — the pamphlet exists in a single printing, so the imprint and date are themselves the identification, and there is no first-versus-later-printing question
• The print run is not fixed: Ken Lopez (ABAA) records 'an unknown number of copies were printed, generally thought to be between 100 and 200, with the lower number more likely,' while a dealer account attributed to Carver himself puts it at some 200 copies; it was distributed locally by the English Club and no copies were offered for sale, which accounts for the survival rate
• Lopez characterises it as 'one of the scarcest first books of the latter half of the 20th century,' noting only a single auction appearance across the major internet databases in roughly two decades
• Because copies were never trade-distributed, provenance and the absence of any later imprint are the practical checks; ownership signatures are common and not a defect of issue

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. 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.
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?

The census claim is confirmed: Near Klamath is US-only, published by the English Club of Sacramento State College, Sacramento, California, 1968, and there is no UK, foreign, or original-language precedence question — no other edition exists. It is Carver's first separately published book and anchors any Carver census; the later poetry pamphlets (Winter Insomnia, 1970) do not precede it. One reference source states Carver was teaching at Sacramento State at the time of publication; his documented association with the college was as a student (BA 1963), so that claim is not repeated here.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

None — no book-club, reprint, or later issue of Near Klamath exists in the sources consulted, the pamphlet having been produced in one small run for local distribution. Any copy presenting as this title in a binding other than stapled printed wrappers, or bearing a commercial imprint, is not this book.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Near Klamath a first edition?

A first edition of Near Klamath by Raymond Carver (English Club of Sacramento State College) is identified by: Carver's first book: a slim collection of poems issued in stapled printed wrappers by the English Club of Sacramento State College, Sacramento, California, 1968, reported as red wraps printed in black.

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). The census claim is confirmed: Near Klamath is US-only, published by the English Club of Sacramento State College, Sacramento, California, 1968, and there is no UK, foreign, or original-language precedence question — no other edition exists.

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

None — no book-club, reprint, or later issue of Near Klamath exists in the sources consulted, the pamphlet having been produced in one small run for local distribution. Any copy presenting as this title in a binding other than stapled printed wrappers, or bearing a commercial imprint, is not this book.

I have a first edition of Near Klamath — 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.