Is My Copy of The Children's Hour a First Edition?

The points of issue

• 'First edition' is stated on the copyright page — this is unusually well attested for a play of this date: the Library of Congress catalog record for the book (LCCN 34042816) quotes the statement directly as a note, and the ABAA trade independently describes copies as 'First Edition, stated'
• Collation per the Library of Congress: 5 preliminary leaves, pp. 3-115, [1], 20 cm; dealers describe it as octavo, 115 pp. Binding: tan boards stamped in maroon, with a blue spine panel lettered in white, and a brown topstain — all three elements together
• Jacket: printed and priced at the flap; jacketed copies are described in the trade as scarce, and the jacket is the element most often absent or supplied
• Hellman's first play and her first book, so there is no earlier Hellman book to confuse it with
• No number line is used; the copyright-page statement is the whole of the point

How Alfred A. Knopf, New York marked a first edition

• c.1933/1934 onward (stated 'First Edition' era — the core rule): Knopf began consistently printing 'FIRST EDITION' on the copyright page of first printings, or 'FIRST AMERICAN EDITION' when the book had already appeared…

Full Alfred A. Knopf, New York 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 only-first. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1934 is the true first. The UK edition is Hamish Hamilton, London, 1937 (127 pp.) — three years later, so no UK-precedence question arises and the London edition should never be described as a first. Only the Knopf 1934 is collected as the first edition of the work; the Hamish Hamilton is a first English edition and nothing more.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club printing is documented for the Knopf 1934. The practical tell is the copyright-page statement itself: a copy lacking the quoted 'First edition.' note is a later Knopf printing, and no binding or jacket variant substitutes for that check. The recurring misidentifications are the 1937 Hamish Hamilton (London) edition and the later collected and acting-edition reprints, all of which carry their own imprints and dates on the title page — read the imprint before the binding.P-041955

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Children's Hour a first edition?

A first edition of The Children's Hour by Lillian Hellman (Alfred A. Knopf, New York) is identified by: 'First edition' is stated on the copyright page — this is unusually well attested for a play of this date: the Library of Congress catalog record for the book (LCCN 34042816) quotes the statement directly as a note, and the ABAA trade independently describes copies as 'First Edition, stated'.

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 only-first.

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

No book-club printing is documented for the Knopf 1934. The practical tell is the copyright-page statement itself: a copy lacking the quoted 'First edition.' note is a later Knopf printing, and no binding or jacket variant substitutes for that check. The recurring misidentifications are the 1937 Hamish Hamilton (London) edition and the later collected and acting-edition reprints, all of which carry their own imprints and dates on the title page — read the imprint before the binding.

I have a first edition of The Children's Hour — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

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.