Is My The Ancient Child a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The point is the words "First Edition" stated on the copyright page beneath the copyright notice — Doubleday's documented practice across 1927–2000 — and dealers describe trade first printings of this title as "first edition stated." For Doubleday in this period the stated line, not a number line, is the operative point; later printings drop the statement
• The book is issued in quarter cloth over boards with a pictorial dust jacket, priced at the flap with a Canadian price beneath it; dealer descriptions of the spine cloth vary (tan with black-and-white lettering, brown with copper lettering), so the binding shade is not a dependable point
• Collation is 314 pages, ISBN 0-385-27972-8
• No first-state text errors are documented in the sources consulted

How Doubleday marked a first edition

• 1897–c.1920s (Doubleday & McClure / Doubleday, Page): first editions have the SAME date on title page and copyright page with no other printings mentioned.
• Early 1920s–1927: began stating 'First Edition' on the copyright page (not always on books first published outside the US); by 1927 (Doubleday, Doran) used 'First Edition' consistently.

Full Doubleday 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 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 Doubleday (New York), 1989 is the true first and is the only hardcover first — no UK hardcover edition of the same date was located in the sources consulted, so this is genuinely a US-only first and the census claim stands. The Harper Perennial paperback of 1990 (ISBN 0-06-097345-5) is a first-thus reissue with no precedence and is the most common trap, since it is the edition most often shelved and cited. Momaday wrote in English, so no original-language precedence question arises. This is Momaday's second novel, after the Pulitzer-winning House Made of Dawn.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club issue is documented in the sources consulted; the dealer listings examined all describe trade copies. If a Doubleday club printing exists, the period tells would apply: an unpriced jacket, a five-digit code in a white block on the rear jacket panel, absent bar code, thinner bulk and cheaper binding, and a blind stamp at the lower rear board — and note that a Doubleday club copy can still show "First Edition" on the copyright page, so the stated line must always be checked against the jacket and binding.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Ancient Child a first edition?

A first edition of The Ancient Child by N. Scott Momaday (Doubleday) is identified by: The point is the words "First Edition" stated on the copyright page beneath the copyright notice — Doubleday's documented practice across 1927–2000 — and dealers describe trade first printings of this title as "first edition stated." For Doubleday in this period the stated line, not a number line, is the operative point; later printings drop the statement.

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). US Doubleday (New York), 1989 is the true first and is the only hardcover first — no UK hardcover edition of the same date was located in the sources consulted, so this is genuinely a US-only first and the census claim stands.

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

No book-club issue is documented in the sources consulted; the dealer listings examined all describe trade copies. If a Doubleday club printing exists, the period tells would apply: an unpriced jacket, a five-digit code in a white block on the rear jacket panel, absent bar code, thinner bulk and cheaper binding, and a blind stamp at the lower rear board — and note that a Doubleday club copy can still show "First Edition" on the copyright page, so the stated line must always be checked against th

I have a first edition of The Ancient Child — 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.