The points of issue
Hardcover bound in light blue paper-covered boards over black spine cloth, stamped on the spine in metallic blue; dust jacket carries the printed price; number line present down to 1. The cloth print run was roughly 1,300 copies, with a simultaneous trade paperback in pictorial wraps.
Is this the true first?
Wallace's debut novel. The cloth hardcover is the desirable true first; the simultaneous Viking trade paperback in pictorial wraps is also a first printing but far less sought after. The US edition is the first; no foreign precedence issue.
Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition (the run was small and literary). The common later state is the later paperback reprint under a different imprint, plainly a different publisher and later.
Frequently asked questions
Is my copy of The Broom of the System a first edition?
Look for these first-edition points: Hardcover bound in light blue paper-covered boards over black spine cloth, stamped on the spine in metallic blue; dust jacket carries the printed price; number line present down to 1. The cloth print run was roughly 1,300 copies, with a simultaneous trade paperback in pictorial wraps.
How do I tell the first printing from a later one?
Check the copyright page for the publisher's first-printing convention and confirm the points above. Wallace's debut novel. The cloth hardcover is the desirable true first; the simultaneous Viking trade paperback in pictorial wraps is also a first printing but far less sought after. The US edition is the first; no foreign precedence issue.
Is the book-club edition the same as the first?
No book-club edition (the run was small and literary). The common later state is the later paperback reprint under a different imprint, plainly a different publisher and later.
I have a first edition of The Broom of the System — what should I do?
If you're clearing books, New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup in Albuquerque, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies aren't lost. To sell, see the author's collecting guide. Either way, nothing valuable ends up in a landfill.