Is My The Cold War Swap a First Edition?

The points of issue

• William Morrow's practice before 1973 was to place "First Printing (Month, Year)" on the copyright page only sometimes, but to always indicate later printings
• The operative point is therefore negative: a first has no later-printing statement on the copyright page, and the presence of any such line rules the copy out
• Octavo, bound in cloth-backed boards — dealers describe a blue cloth backstrip over patterned boards
• The jacket carries the line "A Novel of Espionage"; a priced jacket with the price present at the front flap is expected on an unclipped copy
• No first-state text error is documented in the sources consulted for this title, and none should be inferred

How William Morrow marked a first edition

• 1922–c.1962 (Harper & Brothers, stated-first era): from 1922 Harper & Brothers began printing the words 'First Edition' on the copyright page. IMPORTANT: the letter printing code did NOT stop in 1922 — it continued to ap…
• Reading the year code (the central trap): the year sequence begins M=1912 and runs forward through the alphabet — M=1912, N=1913, O=1914 … Z=1925, A=1926, B=1927 … L=1936. In 1937 the alphabet is RECYCLED: it restarts at…

Full William Morrow 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 UK 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?

The census claim holds as to precedence: the true first is William Morrow (New York), 1966 — Ross Thomas's debut and the first appearance of McCorkle and Padillo. One correction to the census note: the book won the 1967 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best First Novel, not Best Novel. Title-change trap on the UK side: the British first is Hodder & Stoughton (London), 1967, published under the different title Spy in the Vodka — collectors seeking the UK first must look for that title, not The Cold War Swap. Hodder reverted to the original title for its 1968 paperback, so any UK copy reading The Cold War Swap postdates the UK hardback first.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

American book-club copies circulate. Tells: a blind stamp impressed on the rear board (Book-of-the-Month Club used a dot, circle, or square, sometimes coloured), no price at the jacket flap on an unclipped jacket, lighter bulk, and cheaper board stock. If the flap corner is clipped, the rear-board blind stamp is the decider — an unpriced jacket alone cannot establish a trade first.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Cold War Swap a first edition?

A first edition of The Cold War Swap by Ross Thomas (William Morrow) is identified by: William Morrow's practice before 1973 was to place "First Printing (Month, Year)" on the copyright page only sometimes, but to always indicate later printings.

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. The census claim holds as to precedence: the true first is William Morrow (New York), 1966 — Ross Thomas's debut and the first appearance of McCorkle and Padillo.

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

American book-club copies circulate. Tells: a blind stamp impressed on the rear board (Book-of-the-Month Club used a dot, circle, or square, sometimes coloured), no price at the jacket flap on an unclipped jacket, lighter bulk, and cheaper board stock. If the flap corner is clipped, the rear-board blind stamp is the decider — an unpriced jacket alone cannot establish a trade first.

I have a first edition of The Cold War Swap — 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.