# Is "Something to Declare" by Julian Barnes a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Something to Declare by Julian Barnes (Picador, 2002) is identified by: Second collection of essays on France. UK Picador paperback (2002) is the first edition; a US Alfred A.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Second collection of essays on France
- The UK first edition is a Picador paperback in card wrappers with French flaps (Howard Hodgkin cover painting in red, blue and white), roughly 19.6 by 12.9 cm, with blue endpapers, not a cloth hardback
- Copyright page reads First published 2002 by Picador
- ISBN 0 330 48916 X. Collation xviii, 318 pages
- Publisher imprint reads Picador
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Julian Barnes |
| Publisher | Picador |
| Year | 2002 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Second collection of essays on France |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Second collection of essays on France. The UK first edition is a Picador paperback in card wrappers with French flaps (Howard Hodgkin cover painting in red, blue and white), roughly 19.6 by 12.9 cm, with blue endpapers, not a cloth hardback. Copyright page reads First published 2002 by Picador; ISBN 0 330 48916 X. Collation xviii, 318 pages.

## Is this the true first?
UK Picador paperback (2002) is the first edition; a US Alfred A. Knopf edition and a Random House Canada edition also appeared in 2002. Picador originated this title in wrappers rather than as a Cape hardback.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Picador printings state a higher impression on the copyright page; the wrappers, French flaps, and 2002 date mark the first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Something to Declare* by Julian Barnes a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/something-to-declare
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.