Is My The Armies of the Night a First Edition?

The points of issue

• New American Library, New York, 1968; the copyright page carries a stated First Printing for the true first
• Octavo, 288 pages, bound in cloth with illustrated endpapers and the title stamped on the spine
• The first-issue dust jacket is designed by Paul Bacon and bears the printed price on the front flap, which should be present and unclipped
• Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award

How The New American Library marked a first edition

• First printing: the copyright page states 'First Printing' (often as 'First Signet printing, Month Year') with no later-printing lines; later printings stack the printing history. This explicit statement is the most reli…
• Signet/NAL adopted a descending number line; a complete line ending in 1 indicates a first printing. From roughly the 1970s on the 'First Signet printing, Month Year' line plus the number line appear together.

Full The New American Library 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. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
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 New American Library (1968) is the true first, preceding the UK Weidenfeld & Nicolson edition (pale green cloth) of 1968. The full title is 'The Armies of the Night: History as a Novel, The Novel as History.'P-022938

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Book-club issue lacks the stated first-printing line, is typically blind-stamped on the rear board, and comes in an unpriced jacket.P-022939

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Armies of the Night a first edition?

A first edition of The Armies of the Night by Norman Mailer (The New American Library) is identified by: New American Library, New York, 1968; the copyright page carries a stated First Printing for the true first.

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

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. US New American Library (1968) is the true first, preceding the UK Weidenfeld & Nicolson edition (pale green cloth) of 1968.

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

Book-club issue lacks the stated first-printing line, is typically blind-stamped on the rear board, and comes in an unpriced jacket.

I have a first edition of The Armies of the Night — 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.