# Is "Stamboul Train" by Graham Greene a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Stamboul Train by Graham Greene (Heinemann, 1932) is identified by: London: Heinemann, 1932. UK Heinemann is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- London: Heinemann, 1932. 'First published 1932' on the verso
- The decisive point is the J.B. Priestley libel issue: Priestley, recognizing the character read as a caricature of him, threatened action, so roughly 13,000 sheets were recalled and cancel leaves substituted
- The genuine first (uncorrected) issue retains the original text
- The quickest test is on page 82: the uncorrected first issue reads 'Dickens' (line 2) and uses the name 'Savory'; corrected copies change the name to 'Quin Savory' across several pages and replace 'Dickens' with 'Chaucer.'
- Publisher imprint reads Heinemann
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Graham Greene |
| Publisher | Heinemann |
| Year | 1932 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | London: Heinemann, 1932. 'First published 1932' on the verso |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
London: Heinemann, 1932. 'First published 1932' on the verso. The decisive point is the J.B. Priestley libel issue: Priestley, recognizing the character read as a caricature of him, threatened action, so roughly 13,000 sheets were recalled and cancel leaves substituted. The genuine first (uncorrected) issue retains the original text. The quickest test is on page 82: the uncorrected first issue reads 'Dickens' (line 2) and uses the name 'Savory'; corrected copies change the name to 'Quin Savory' across several pages and replace 'Dickens' with 'Chaucer.'

## Is this the true first?
UK Heinemann is the true first. The US title is 'Orient Express' (Doubleday, 1933), a later and separately titled edition, not the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The corrected (second) state carries the substituted cancel leaves, with 'Quin Savory' and 'Chaucer' in place of the original readings; later reprints carry impression statements.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Stamboul Train* by Graham Greene a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/stamboul-train
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.