# Is "That Uncertain Feeling" by Kingsley Amis a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of That Uncertain Feeling by Kingsley Amis (Victor Gollancz, 1955) is identified by: Amis's second novel, following Lucky Jim. UK Victor Gollancz (London) 1955 is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Amis's second novel, following Lucky Jim
- The true first is Victor Gollancz, London, 1955: octavo, red cloth lettered in gilt on the spine, half-title present, 254 pp
- Gollancz used no number line, so a first impression shows only 'First published 1955' on the verso with no additional impression line; a second impression, also dated 1955, exists and is the common trap
- The original dust jacket is the typographic yellow Gollancz wrapper lettered in pink/red and black, with the price present at the front flap (unclipped on a first-issue jacket)
- Corroborated by Christie's cataloguing and independent ABAA dealer descriptions
- Publisher imprint reads Victor Gollancz
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Kingsley Amis |
| Publisher | Victor Gollancz |
| Year | 1955 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Amis's second novel, following Lucky Jim |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Amis's second novel, following Lucky Jim. The true first is Victor Gollancz, London, 1955: octavo, red cloth lettered in gilt on the spine, half-title present, 254 pp. Gollancz used no number line, so a first impression shows only 'First published 1955' on the verso with no additional impression line; a second impression, also dated 1955, exists and is the common trap. The original dust jacket is the typographic yellow Gollancz wrapper lettered in pink/red and black, with the price present at the front flap (unclipped on a first-issue jacket). Corroborated by Christie's cataloguing and independent ABAA dealer descriptions.

## Is this the true first?
UK Victor Gollancz (London) 1955 is the true first. The first American edition followed from Harcourt, Brace (New York) in 1956 — a later, separately collected issue with no priority.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Distinguish later Gollancz impressions (dated 1955 but stating 'Second impression') and any Reprint Society/World Books or later paperback issues, which are reprints, not the first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *That Uncertain Feeling* by Kingsley Amis a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/that-uncertain-feeling
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.