Is My Copy of The Chocolate War a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Pantheon Books, New York, 1974 is the true first
• Library of Congress (LCCN 73-15109) records Pantheon Books, [New York], [1974], 253 pages, 22 cm, ISBN 0-394-82805-4 — the pagination and ISBN are the baseline check, and dealer listings consistently show 253 pages
• Pantheon has stated "First Edition" on the copyright page since 1964 (Quill & Brush) — one guide narrows this to "First Edition" from 1971 on, with "First Printing" or "First American Edition" used 1965–1971 — so a first printing carries the "First Edition" statement with no later-printing notice; by 1974 Pantheon was a Random House imprint following the same house practice as Random House and Knopf
• Binding is publisher's cloth-backed boards (quarter cloth over paper-covered boards) with stamped spine lettering, in a pictorial dust jacket; the jacket should be priced at the front flap
• Do not rely on binding colour as a point: ABAA and trade dealer descriptions conflict, variously reporting brown cloth with gilt spine lettering and quarter brown cloth over light blue blind-stamped boards with silver spine lettering

How Pantheon Books marked a first edition

• Modern Pantheon (Knopf Doubleday / PRH): states 'First Edition' on the copyright page AND uses a descending number line ending in 1.
• A true first has both the 'First Edition' statement and the 1 present; reprints drop 'First Edition' and/or the 1.

Full Pantheon Books 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: Pantheon Books, New York, 1974 — the true first, published after rejection by several houses. UK: Victor Gollancz, London, 1975 — the first British edition, a year later; dealers describe it as octavo, original brown boards gilt, 254 pages, in a beige pictorial dustwrapper priced at the flap. Both are collected, but precedence is unambiguously American; the Gollancz is a first British edition, not a first edition.P-044357

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club issue of the Pantheon hardcover was documented in the sources consulted. The recurring traps are format traps rather than club traps: the publisher's library binding (Random House used a 0-394-9xxxxx ISBN for library issues against the 0-394-82805-4 trade ISBN), the 1986 Laurel-Leaf and 2004 Ember paperbacks, and later Knopf/Random House hardcover reissues that retain the 1974 copyright and are routinely mis-listed by dealers as first editions. A jacket without a price at the flap is normally a clipped trade jacket here, not a club tell.P-044358

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Chocolate War a first edition?

A first edition of The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier (Pantheon Books) is identified by: Pantheon Books, New York, 1974 is the true 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: Pantheon Books, New York, 1974 — the true first, published after rejection by several houses.

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

No book-club issue of the Pantheon hardcover was documented in the sources consulted. The recurring traps are format traps rather than club traps: the publisher's library binding (Random House used a 0-394-9xxxxx ISBN for library issues against the 0-394-82805-4 trade ISBN), the 1986 Laurel-Leaf and 2004 Ember paperbacks, and later Knopf/Random House hardcover reissues that retain the 1974 copyright and are routinely mis-listed by dealers as first editions.

I have a first edition of The Chocolate War — 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.