Is My One Arm and Other Stories a First Edition?

The points of issue

• New Directions, 1948
• The edition comprises 50 deluxe copies printed on Virgil paper and signed by Williams on the limitation leaf, plus 1,500 regular copies on specially made laid paper (roughly 1,550 total)
• The key point of issue is the copyright state of the title leaf: the earliest copies (only about twenty are thought to survive) carry an uncorrected title page crediting the copyright to New Directions; nearly all copies were corrected with a cancel (inserted) title leaf assigning copyright to Williams, which delayed release into early 1949
• Quarter cloth over patterned boards, dust jacket, in slipcase
• Williams's first story collection, originally distributed cautiously because of the content

How New Directions marked a first edition

• Modern paperbacks carry a descending number line; lowest digit (1) present indicates first printing.

Full New Directions first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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 true first is the 1948 New Directions first printing. Within it, the 50 signed copies on Virgil paper are the deluxe issue and the 1,500 laid-paper copies are the regular issue; both belong to the same first printing. The earliest and most desirable state is the uncorrected title leaf crediting copyright to New Directions (before the cancel).

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book club. Both the signed deluxe and the regular copies are part of the single first printing; the meaningful distinction is the uncorrected versus cancel (corrected) title leaf, not a separate later trade issue.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of One Arm and Other Stories a first edition?

A first edition of One Arm and Other Stories by Tennessee Williams (New Directions) is identified by: The edition comprises 50 deluxe copies printed on Virgil paper and signed by Williams on the limitation leaf, plus 1,500 regular copies on specially made laid paper (roughly 1,550 total).

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 true first is the 1948 New Directions first printing.

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

No book club. Both the signed deluxe and the regular copies are part of the single first printing; the meaningful distinction is the uncorrected versus cancel (corrected) title leaf, not a separate later trade issue.

I have a first edition of One Arm and Other Stories — what should I do?

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 lost. To sell, see the author’s collecting guide. Either way, nothing collectible ends up in a landfill.

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.