Is My Seven Gothic Tales a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First edition, first printing carries NO statement of printing on the copyright page (later printings add one)
• Publisher's binding is three-quarter red cloth over cream boards, front and spine panels stamped in gilt, top edge stained red, fore- and bottom edges rough-trimmed; the title-leaf and divisional leaves are printed in red and black
• The first-issue dust jacket is the F. J. Buttera pictorial design with the price present at the flap, and the volume carries Dorothy Canfield's introduction
• Because the book was written in English, this US edition is the first appearance in any language

How Harrison Smith & Robert Haas, New York marked a first edition

• 1932–1936: The firm did NOT consistently use a first-edition statement. First printings are identified primarily by the absence of any subsequent-printing notice on the copyright page (later printings were noted). Some t…

Full Harrison Smith & Robert Haas, New York 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?

US edition (Harrison Smith & Robert Haas, New York, April 1934) is the true first in any language, preceding the first UK edition (Putnam, London, later in 1934) and the author's own Danish version (Syv fantastiske Fortaellinger, Gyldendal, Copenhagen, 1935). Two independent dealer bibliographies state the US edition 'precedes the British and Danish.'

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Book-of-the-Month Club April 1934 main selection, so the first printing was correspondingly large. Later BOMC 'classics' reissues exist with different boards/jacket and added printing data; distinguish the 1934 first trade issue by the priced Buttera jacket and the absence of any printing statement.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Seven Gothic Tales a first edition?

A first edition of Seven Gothic Tales by Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen) (Harrison Smith & Robert Haas, New York) is identified by: First edition, first printing carries NO statement of printing on the copyright page (later printings add one).

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. US edition (Harrison Smith & Robert Haas, New York, April 1934) is the true first in any language, preceding the first UK edition (Putnam, London, later in 1934) and the author's own Danish version (Syv fantastiske Fortaellinger, Gyldendal, Copenhagen, 1935).

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

Book-of-the-Month Club April 1934 main selection, so the first printing was correspondingly large. Later BOMC 'classics' reissues exist with different boards/jacket and added printing data; distinguish the 1934 first trade issue by the priced Buttera jacket and the absence of any printing statement.

I have a first edition of Seven Gothic Tales — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And 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 discarded.

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.