Is My The Black Stallion a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The copyright page of the first printing carries a printing statement — ABAA and independent dealers catalogue true first copies as "Stated First Printing" on the copyright page — and every later printing states its own number ("Twenty-Third Printing," "Thirtieth Printing," "Thirty-Eighth Printing" and onward), so any numbered printing statement rules out the first
• The binding is original grey cloth with a horse stamped in black on the front board, the spine stamped/lettered in black with red rules, and a red top stain; text is illustrated with in-text and full-page black-and-white drawings by Keith Ward (ten plates cited by one dealer), collating approximately [7], viii-ix, [3], 3-275, [3] pages
• The jacket is black and red pictorial and should be unclipped with the price present at the front flap
• Published 15 October 1941; jacketed first printings are uncommon

How Random House marked a first edition

• Stated-edition era (c.1936–1975): trade first printings are plainly marked with the words 'First Edition' (or, on some earlier titles, 'First Printing') on the copyright page, with NO number line yet in use; a copyright…
• Divisional practice — share the STATEMENT, not the '2'-line: sister divisions state 'First Edition' as their firsts (Alfred A. Knopf consistently since 1933–34; Pantheon since 1964), so the words work across the family.…

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. 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 edition is the true first: Random House, New York, 1941 — the census claim is confirmed. No prior magazine serialization and no simultaneous or preceding UK edition are documented; British issues are later and are not collected as co-firsts. This is the first title of the Black Stallion series, published while Farley was a student at Columbia.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Later Random House printings are self-identifying because they state the printing number on the copyright page. Book-club and reprint issues carry a different imprint rather than Random House's printing statement — a Junior Deluxe Editions club issue reproducing the 1941 copyright and the Keith Ward artwork is recorded, and it is a reprint, not the first. One dealer notes a later-issue jacket that carries the original flap price but lists series titles on the rear panel that do not match jackets on confirmed first printings, so the rear-panel title list is a useful secondary check.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Black Stallion a first edition?

A first edition of The Black Stallion by Walter Farley (Random House) is identified by: The copyright page of the first printing carries a printing statement — ABAA and independent dealers catalogue true first copies as "Stated First Printing" on the copyright page — and every later printing states its own number ("Twenty-Third Printing," "Thirtieth Printing," "Thirty-Eighth Printing" and onward), so any numbered printing statement rules out the 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 edition is the true first: Random House, New York, 1941 — the census claim is confirmed.

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

Later Random House printings are self-identifying because they state the printing number on the copyright page. Book-club and reprint issues carry a different imprint rather than Random House's printing statement — a Junior Deluxe Editions club issue reproducing the 1941 copyright and the Keith Ward artwork is recorded, and it is a reprint, not the first. One dealer notes a later-issue jacket that carries the original flap price but lists series titles on the rear panel that do not match jackets

I have a first edition of The Black Stallion — 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.