Is My The Bourne Identity a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Richard Marek Publishers (New York), 1980
• The true first printing is identified by the copyright statement alone, not a number line: the copyright page reads 'Copyright 1980 by Robert Ludlum' at the top and 'Printed in the United States of America' at the foot, with no statement of additional printings
• SBN 399-90070-5
• Bound in black cloth with the spine lettered in gilt
• The first-state dust jacket carries its printed price at the top of the front flap and the code '8003' (denoting a March 1980 issue) at the flap foot
• First Jason Bourne novel

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

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 Richard Marek (1980) is the true first, preceding the UK editions. Confirm the first by the copyright statement with no added-printing notice, not by a number line, as this title was not identified by a printer's key.P-027614

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The Book Club Edition has a blind stamp on the rear board, a reduced trim size, and a jacket lacking the printed price and the '8003' code; it carries no printing statement that would confirm a trade first.P-027615

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Bourne Identity a first edition?

A first edition of The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum (Richard Marek Publishers) is identified by: Richard Marek Publishers (New York), 1980.

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 Richard Marek (1980) is the true first, preceding the UK editions.

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

The Book Club Edition has a blind stamp on the rear board, a reduced trim size, and a jacket lacking the printed price and the '8003' code; it carries no printing statement that would confirm a trade first.

I have a first edition of The Bourne Identity — 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.