Is My Copy of Out of Space and Time a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Arkham printed this once — 1,054 copies — and never reprinted it, so an Arkham House, Sauk City, 1942 imprint is the first printing; there is no printing statement and none should appear
• The binding is publisher's black cloth, collating xii + 370 pages, with the jacket art by Hannes Bok; the jacket should be priced at the top right of the front flap and unclipped on an unmolested copy
• This was Arkham's third book and Smith's first Arkham collection, gathering 21 tales selected by Smith himself from his Averoigne, Hyperborea, Poseidonis and Zothique cycles, with a critical introduction
• One habitual condition tell, not an issue point: the jacket spine lettering, originally pale green, ages to off-white, and jacket spine ends are commonly chipped

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. 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. 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?

Arkham House (Sauk City), 1942, is the true first. There is no competing original-language or UK first. The first British hardcover is Neville Spearman (London), 1971, followed by a two-volume Panther paperback in 1974 and a Bison Books trade paperback in 2006; all are "first thus" at best and none disturbs the 1942 precedence. One naming trap worth knowing: Smith wanted the book titled "The End of the Story and Other Stories" and Derleth supplied the published title, so that phrase on a title page is not this book.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club edition is documented and there is no later Arkham printing, so the confusions are the British and paperback reissues: Neville Spearman 1971 in hardcover, Panther 1974 in two volumes — a two-volume set is never the first — and Bison Books 2006. Facsimile jackets for Arkham House titles are sold openly by reproduction specialists, so a Bok jacket in fresh condition on a 1942 book should be examined for reproduction before anything else is concluded.P-040985

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Out of Space and Time a first edition?

A first edition of Out of Space and Time by Clark Ashton Smith (Arkham House, Sauk City, Wisconsin) is identified by: Arkham printed this once — 1,054 copies — and never reprinted it, so an Arkham House, Sauk City, 1942 imprint is the first printing; there is no printing statement and none should appear.

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. Arkham House (Sauk City), 1942, is the true first.

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

No book-club edition is documented and there is no later Arkham printing, so the confusions are the British and paperback reissues: Neville Spearman 1971 in hardcover, Panther 1974 in two volumes — a two-volume set is never the first — and Bison Books 2006. Facsimile jackets for Arkham House titles are sold openly by reproduction specialists, so a Bok jacket in fresh condition on a 1942 book should be examined for reproduction before anything else is concluded.

I have a first edition of Out of Space and Time — 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.