Is My Copy of Texas a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The first printing has "First Edition" stated on the copyright page TOGETHER WITH the Random House number line running down to 2
• This is the Random House 1976–2000 convention and it is the trap on this title: the number line on both first and second printings ends (or begins) with a 2, so the line alone proves nothing — a copy with the 2-line but no "First Edition" statement is a second printing
• Both elements must be present
• Physical points: a single massive octavo volume (dealers collate xiii + 1,096 pp.; other sources report 1,076 — page-count reports vary), bound in blue cloth with gilt spine lettering and the star of Texas stamped on the front board; pictorial jacket with the price present at the front flap on unclipped copies
• The first printing was extremely large — reported at 750,000 copies, said to be the largest initial run in the company's history — so stated firsts are common and condition is what separates copies
• No first-state text errors are documented

How Random House marked a first edition

• Classic paradox era (c.1970–2002/03) — THE famous Random House rule: a true first printing states 'First Edition' AND carries a number line whose lowest digit is 2 — the line ENDS (or begins) in 2 and NEVER reaches 1, e.…
• Classic-era reprint mechanics (c.1970–2002/03): on going to a second printing Random House simply DELETED the words 'First Edition' from the copyright page and left the number line intact — so a bare '2'-ending line…

Full Random House 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. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
4. Verify this is the UK 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?

No Texas A&M (or State House Press) limited edition preceding the trade issue is documented; that claim is unsupported and appears to be a conflation. The collected first is the Random House trade edition, New York, 1985. Two other 1985–86 issues exist and must not be mistaken for it: (a) a Random House signed and numbered limited edition of 1,000 copies, 1985, in cloth (reported variously as burnt-orange, mauve or brown) with gilt spine lettering and the Texas star on the front board, in a publisher's slipcase — collected alongside the trade first, but precedence between the two is not documented in any source consulted, so neither should be asserted to precede the other; and (b) the University of Texas Press Sesquicentennial edition, 1986, two volumes in quarter leather, limited to 400 numbered copies signed by Michener and illustrator Charles Shaw, in a cloth slipcase — this is a year later and is a "first thus" trap, not the first. A UK hardcover (Secker & Warburg, London) also appeared and does not precede the American edition; the Corgi UK paperback (1986) is a reprint.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The strongest tell on this title: the book-club issue of Texas is a TWO-VOLUME set, whereas the Random House trade first is one thick single volume — any two-volume Random House "Texas" in jackets is the club issue, not the first (the two-volume University of Texas Press set is quarter leather in a slipcase and is a separate, later limited edition). Other standard club tells: no price at the jacket flap (often "Book Club Edition" printed there), a blind stamp or colored deboss at the lower rear board, and smaller trim with lighter, bulkier paper.P-043481

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Texas a first edition?

A first edition of Texas by James A. Michener (Random House) is identified by: The first printing has "First Edition" stated on the copyright page TOGETHER WITH the Random House number line running down to 2.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). No Texas A&M (or State House Press) limited edition preceding the trade issue is documented; that claim is unsupported and appears to be a conflation.

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

The strongest tell on this title: the book-club issue of Texas is a TWO-VOLUME set, whereas the Random House trade first is one thick single volume — any two-volume Random House "Texas" in jackets is the club issue, not the first (the two-volume University of Texas Press set is quarter leather in a slipcase and is a separate, later limited edition).

I have a first edition of Texas — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

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.