# Is "The Carpet People" by Terry Pratchett a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Carpet People by Terry Pratchett (Colin Smythe, 1971) is identified by: Pratchett's first book, published 16 November 1971 in a print run of about 3,000 copies; hardback with dust jacket protected by a Duraseal cover rather than lamination; illustrated throughout by Pratchett himself, including pages of his own color illustrations. UK Colin Smythe true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Pratchett's first book, published 16 November 1971 in a print run of about 3,000 copies; hardback with dust jacket protected by a Duraseal cover rather than lamination; illustrated throughout by Pratchett himself, including pages of his own color illustrations
- Key issue point: the printer ran the page 34 illustration upside down, so that leaf was removed and a corrected replacement leaf (pages 33-34) was tipped in to every copy
- Publisher imprint reads Colin Smythe
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Terry Pratchett |
| Publisher | Colin Smythe |
| Year | 1971 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Pratchett's first book, published 16 November 1971 in a print run of about 3,000 copies; hardback with dust jacket protected by a Duraseal… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Pratchett's first book, published 16 November 1971 in a print run of about 3,000 copies; hardback with dust jacket protected by a Duraseal cover rather than lamination; illustrated throughout by Pratchett himself, including pages of his own color illustrations. Key issue point: the printer ran the page 34 illustration upside down, so that leaf was removed and a corrected replacement leaf (pages 33-34) was tipped in to every copy.

## Is this the true first?
UK Colin Smythe true first. The original 1971 text differs substantially from the 1992 rewrite. Extremely scarce; one of the key Pratchett rarities.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The 1992 Doubleday rewrite is a different text, not the first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Carpet People* by Terry Pratchett a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-carpet-people
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.