Is My Sackett's Land a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Saturday Review Press/Dutton hardcover, 1974, with a stated first edition and the original dust jacket
• From the mid-1970s onward L'Amour appeared first in hardcover

How Saturday Review Press / E.P. Dutton marked a first edition

• c.1970-1973 (independent): First printings are most reliably identified by the absence of any later-printing or reprint statement on the copyright page. Do not rely on a number line as the primary signal for this short-l…
• c.1973-c.1976 (under E.P. Dutton): Titles appear as 'Saturday Review Press / E.P. Dutton' or 'Saturday Review Press, distributed by E.P. Dutton' and follow Dutton's documented post-1929 practice, where a first printing i…

Full Saturday Review Press / E.P. Dutton 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. 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 US 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?

True first US hardcover; opening title of the Sackett saga by internal chronology. Hardcover firsts from 1974 onward are the collected firsts.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Book-club editions of the L'Amour hardcovers exist; confirm the stated first edition on the copyright page and the original jacket price, since club copies lack these.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Sackett's Land a first edition?

A first edition of Sackett's Land by Louis L'Amour (Saturday Review Press / E.P. Dutton) is identified by: Saturday Review Press/Dutton hardcover, 1974, with a stated first edition and the original dust jacket.

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. True first US hardcover; opening title of the Sackett saga by internal chronology.

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

Book-club editions of the L'Amour hardcovers exist; confirm the stated first edition on the copyright page and the original jacket price, since club copies lack these.

I have a first edition of Sackett's Land — 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.