# Is "Quicksand" by Nella Larsen a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Quicksand by Nella Larsen (Alfred A. Knopf, 1928) is identified by: 189 x 130 mm), bound in publisher's orange cloth ruled in dark blue and lettered in gilt on the spine and upper board. US Alfred A.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- 189 x 130 mm), bound in publisher's orange cloth ruled in dark blue and lettered in gilt on the spine and upper board
- Knopf's practice before 1933/34 was to carry no first-edition statement: the first printing's copyright page bears a "Published [month], 1928"-style note and nothing more, while every later printing is explicitly stated ("Second Printing," "Third Printing," etc.)
- Identification therefore rests on the absence of any printing statement, not the presence of one
- Watch for the Knopf variant "First and second printings before publication" — a copyright page reading that way is a second printing, not a first
- The printed jacket is very scarce; a priced jacket with the price present at the flap is the unclipped state
- Gilt commonly oxidizes and the spine cloth fades — condition traits, not printing points
- Publisher imprint reads Alfred A. Knopf

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Nella Larsen |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Year | 1928 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | 189 x 130 mm), bound in publisher's orange cloth ruled in dark blue and lettered in gilt on the spine and upper board |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Octavo (approx. 189 x 130 mm), bound in publisher's orange cloth ruled in dark blue and lettered in gilt on the spine and upper board. Knopf's practice before 1933/34 was to carry no first-edition statement: the first printing's copyright page bears a "Published [month], 1928"-style note and nothing more, while every later printing is explicitly stated ("Second Printing," "Third Printing," etc.). Identification therefore rests on the absence of any printing statement, not the presence of one. Watch for the Knopf variant "First and second printings before publication" — a copyright page reading that way is a second printing, not a first. The printed jacket is very scarce; a priced jacket with the price present at the flap is the unclipped state. Gilt commonly oxidizes and the spine cloth fades — condition traits, not printing points.

## Is this the true first?
US Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1928 is the only first — Larsen's first novel. No contemporaneous separate British edition was traced in the sources consulted; period Knopf imprint lines can read New York and London, but that reflects the imprint, not a distinct UK edition, and does not create a competing first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club or reprint issue of the 1928 Knopf sheets is documented in the sources consulted. Later Knopf printings identify themselves by stated printing on the copyright page; modern reprints (Negro Universities Press, Norton Critical, Penguin, Rutgers) are plainly stated and pose no confusion.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Quicksand* by Nella Larsen a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/quicksand
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.