Is My NOS4A2 a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First printing is the William Morrow (New York) hardcover published 30 April 2013, ISBN 978-0-06-220057-0, and carries BOTH a stated 'First Edition' on the copyright page and the complete number line — dealers describe it as 'Stated First Edition/First Printing with the complete number line' and 'full number line as required'
• The jacket should be priced with the price present at the front flap; a price-clipped or remainder-marked copy is not the wanted state
• The book contains more than fifteen interior illustrations by Gabriel Rodríguez, the Locke & Key artist, and includes a special publisher's page frequently used for signed copies — the presence of that page is normal to the first printing and is not itself a signature point

How William Morrow, New York marked a first edition

• 1922–c.1962 (Harper & Brothers, stated-first era): from 1922 Harper & Brothers began printing the words 'First Edition' on the copyright page. IMPORTANT: the letter printing code did NOT stop in 1922 — it continued to ap…
• Reading the year code (the central trap): the year sequence begins M=1912 and runs forward through the alphabet — M=1912, N=1913, O=1914 … Z=1925, A=1926, B=1927 … L=1936. In 1937 the alphabet is RECYCLED: it restarts at…

Full William Morrow, New York 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 US 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?

US William Morrow, New York, 30 April 2013 is the true first. The UK Gollancz (London) edition was RETITLED 'NOS4R2' — the American vanity-plate reading of 'Nosferatu' does not work in British pronunciation — and was released later, in May 2013, so it does not compete for precedence despite sharing the year. Both are collected: the Morrow NOS4A2 as the true first, and the Gollancz NOS4R2 as the first UK edition under its variant title. The Gollancz first printing is a 689-page octavo with a black spine lettered in green metallic, ISBN 978-0-575-13067-8, with the publisher's number sequence present on the copyright page.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club edition documented in the sources consulted. Tells for a non-first: an incomplete number line, absence of the stated 'First Edition' on the Morrow copyright page, a remainder mark, or a price-clipped flap. Note the title trap in both directions — a UK-titled NOS4R2 copy is never the true first, and Gollancz has also issued the book under the American NOS4A2 title in later printings, which are neither the US first nor the UK first-state title.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of NOS4A2 a first edition?

A first edition of NOS4A2 by Joe Hill (William Morrow, New York) is identified by: First printing is the William Morrow (New York) hardcover published 30 April 2013, ISBN 978-0-06-220057-0, and carries BOTH a stated 'First Edition' on the copyright page and the complete number line — dealers describe it as 'Stated First Edition/First Printing with the complete number line' and 'full number line as required'.

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). US William Morrow, New York, 30 April 2013 is the true first.

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

No book-club edition documented in the sources consulted. Tells for a non-first: an incomplete number line, absence of the stated 'First Edition' on the Morrow copyright page, a remainder mark, or a price-clipped flap. Note the title trap in both directions — a UK-titled NOS4R2 copy is never the true first, and Gollancz has also issued the book under the American NOS4A2 title in later printings, which are neither the US first nor the UK first-state title.

I have a first edition of NOS4A2 — 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.