Is My Quidditch Through the Ages a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First UK edition, first printing is a paperback original (Comic Relief charity edition), March 2001, with a full descending number line to 1 on the copyright page
• First printings have a green spine (the second printing has a red spine)
• Issued alongside Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them; a separate Scholastic (US) paperback issue appeared the same year

How Bloomsbury / Whizz Hard Books marked a first edition

• First printings carry a full descending number line "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1" on the copyright page; the lowest number (1) present = first printing

Full Bloomsbury / Whizz Hard Books 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 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?

UK Bloomsbury / Comic Relief paperback original is the true first (March 2001). Distinct from the 2020 illustrated hardcover by Emily Gravett. Confirm the 2001 charity wrappers and green spine.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The 2001 second printing has a red spine. The 2020 illustrated edition is later; boxed 'Hogwarts Library' sets are not the original separate first issue.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Quidditch Through the Ages a first edition?

A first edition of Quidditch Through the Ages by J.K. Rowling (as Kennilworthy Whisp) (Bloomsbury / Whizz Hard Books) is identified by: First UK edition, first printing is a paperback original (Comic Relief charity edition), March 2001, with a full descending number line to 1 on the copyright page.

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). UK Bloomsbury / Comic Relief paperback original is the true first (March 2001).

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

The 2001 second printing has a red spine. The 2020 illustrated edition is later; boxed 'Hogwarts Library' sets are not the original separate first issue.

I have a first edition of Quidditch Through the Ages — 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.