# Is "Ravelstein" by Saul Bellow a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Ravelstein by Saul Bellow (Viking, 2000) is identified by: The first printing carries no 'First Edition' statement on the copyright page; it is identified solely by the complete number line 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2, and dealers describing first printings note the edition is 'not explicated as such at copyright page, first printing as indicated by number sequence thereon.' This matches documented Viking practice, which by the 1980s-2000s had moved from a printed publication statement to a number row as the first-printing indicator. US Viking (New York) is the true first, published 24 April 2000; the UK Viking (London) edition, ISBN 9780670891313, followed within days (retailer metadata gives 27 April 2000).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The first printing carries no 'First Edition' statement on the copyright page; it is identified solely by the complete number line 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2, and dealers describing first printings note the edition is 'not explicated as such at copyright page, first printing as indicated by number sequence thereon.' This matches documented Viking practice, which by the 1980s-2000s had moved from a printed publication statement to a number row as the first-printing indicator
- The trade issue is a hardcover in dust jacket bearing ISBN 0-670-84134-X
- the jacket should be a priced jacket with the price present at the flap and unclipped
- Sources consulted differ on the collation (224 vs
- 233 pages), so pagination is not offered as a point
- Publisher imprint reads Viking
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Saul Bellow |
| Publisher | Viking |
| Year | 2000 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The first printing carries no 'First Edition' statement on the copyright page; it is identified solely by the complete number line 1 3 5 7… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
The first printing carries no 'First Edition' statement on the copyright page; it is identified solely by the complete number line 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2, and dealers describing first printings note the edition is 'not explicated as such at copyright page, first printing as indicated by number sequence thereon.' This matches documented Viking practice, which by the 1980s-2000s had moved from a printed publication statement to a number row as the first-printing indicator. The trade issue is a hardcover in dust jacket bearing ISBN 0-670-84134-X (9780670841349); the jacket should be a priced jacket with the price present at the flap and unclipped. Sources consulted differ on the collation (224 vs. 233 pages), so pagination is not offered as a point.

## Is this the true first?
US Viking (New York) is the true first, published 24 April 2000; the UK Viking (London) edition, ISBN 9780670891313, followed within days (retailer metadata gives 27 April 2000). The two are effectively simultaneous and both are collected, but priority rests with the US issue. Bellow's last novel. The later Penguin Classics issue (9780143107576), with a Gary Shteyngart introduction, is a 'first thus' and not a first edition.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club issue of Ravelstein is documented in the sources consulted. Dealers do flag copies whose jackets carry no printed flap price as suspect — possible club or later issue — so the absence of a printed price (as distinct from a clipped price) should prompt scrutiny rather than be treated as a first-printing trait.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Ravelstein* by Saul Bellow a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/ravelstein
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.