# Is "Quick Service" by P.G. Wodehouse a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Quick Service by P.G. Wodehouse (Herbert Jenkins, 1940) is identified by: First UK edition, Herbert Jenkins, London, published 4 October 1940, preceding the US Doubleday Doran edition of 27 December 1940. UK Herbert Jenkins is the true first (4 October 1940); the US Doubleday Doran edition followed in December 1940.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First UK edition, Herbert Jenkins, London, published 4 October 1940, preceding the US Doubleday Doran edition of 27 December 1940
- Bound in red cloth lettered in gilt on the spine with the Herbert Jenkins device, issued in the pictorial dust jacket illustrated by Fenwick
- The first-issue jacket carries the printed price; unclipped examples are preferred but clipping alone does not change the printing
- Publisher imprint reads Herbert Jenkins
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | P.G. Wodehouse |
| Publisher | Herbert Jenkins |
| Year | 1940 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First UK edition, Herbert Jenkins, London, published 4 October 1940, preceding the US Doubleday Doran edition of 27 December 1940 |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First UK edition, Herbert Jenkins, London, published 4 October 1940, preceding the US Doubleday Doran edition of 27 December 1940. Bound in red cloth lettered in gilt on the spine with the Herbert Jenkins device, issued in the pictorial dust jacket illustrated by Fenwick. The first-issue jacket carries the printed price; unclipped examples are preferred but clipping alone does not change the printing.

## Is this the true first?
UK Herbert Jenkins is the true first (4 October 1940); the US Doubleday Doran edition followed in December 1940.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club issue.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Quick Service* by P.G. Wodehouse a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/quick-service
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.