Is My The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The first printing states "FIRST PRINTING" at the foot of the copyright page — a positive statement, so its absence disqualifies a copy
• Boards are a brown simulated/faux leather
• Page count is given as 245 pp (some dealers cite 244)
• The jacket's rear panel carries a photograph of the author together with blurbs by Max Steele, Alice Walker, and James Alan McPherson; a priced jacket with the price present at the flap is the unclipped state
• Because the identification is a stated one, no number line applies and the 1971 date alone establishes nothing without the statement

How Dial Press marked a first edition

• Pre-mid-1960s (classic Dial, incl. early Baldwin/Mailer firsts): first edition identified by the SAME DATE appearing on both the title page and the copyright page, with no later-printing statement. Early imprints may rea…
• Mid/late-1960s to ~1980: first printings stated 'First Printing (Year)' on the copyright page, with subsequent printings explicitly noted.

Full Dial Press 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 The Dial Press, New York, 1971 is the true first. The first British edition was published by Michael Joseph, London; the 1973 date carried in the census could not be corroborated against two independent sources and should not be asserted as fact. The Dial edition holds precedence regardless.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No specific book-club tells (blind stamp, absent flap price, reduced bulk) are documented for this title in the sources consulted, and none should be asserted without confirmation. The reliable disqualifier remains the negative one: any copy lacking the stated "FIRST PRINTING" line at the foot of the Dial copyright page is not the first printing.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman a first edition?

A first edition of The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines (Dial Press) is identified by: The first printing states "FIRST PRINTING" at the foot of the copyright page — a positive statement, so its absence disqualifies a copy.

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 The Dial Press, New York, 1971 is the true first.

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

No specific book-club tells (blind stamp, absent flap price, reduced bulk) are documented for this title in the sources consulted, and none should be asserted without confirmation. The reliable disqualifier remains the negative one: any copy lacking the stated "FIRST PRINTING" line at the foot of the Dial copyright page is not the first printing.

I have a first edition of The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman — 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.