# Is "The Dragon in the Sea" by Frank Herbert a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Dragon in the Sea by Frank Herbert (Doubleday & Company, Garden City, New York, 1956) is identified by: The first printing is 'First Edition' so stated on the copyright page — Doubleday's practice for the period, and the single decisive point. US original.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The first printing is 'First Edition' so stated on the copyright page — Doubleday's practice for the period, and the single decisive point
- Bound in black cloth lettered in lime green to the spine
- 8vo, 192 pp
- Dust jacket art by Mel Hunter; a first-state jacket is unclipped with the price present at the flap
- This is Herbert's first book and his first science-fiction novel, so early copies were printed in modest numbers and the jacket is the scarce element
- Publisher imprint reads Doubleday & Company, Garden City, New York
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Frank Herbert |
| Publisher | Doubleday & Company, Garden City, New York |
| Year | 1956 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The first printing is 'First Edition' so stated on the copyright page — Doubleday's practice for the period, and the single decisive point |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
The first printing is 'First Edition' so stated on the copyright page — Doubleday's practice for the period, and the single decisive point. Bound in black cloth lettered in lime green to the spine; 8vo, 192 pp. Dust jacket art by Mel Hunter; a first-state jacket is unclipped with the price present at the flap. This is Herbert's first book and his first science-fiction novel, so early copies were printed in modest numbers and the jacket is the scarce element.

## Is this the true first?
US original. Doubleday (Garden City, 1956) is the true first in book form. The text first appeared serially as 'Under Pressure' in Astounding (November 1955 - January 1956) and was reworked for the book — a magazine appearance, not a competing first edition. The first UK edition is Victor Gollancz, London, 1960 (crown 8vo, 206 pp., original red cloth lettered in black at the spine, priced jacket); it is separately collected as the British first but does not precede Doubleday. The retitlings are reprints, not firsts: Avon's paperback the printed pricet Century Sub and Ballantine's Under Pressure (1974, 'First Printing: March, 1974' on the copyright page) both reissue this text.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Doubleday issued the title through its book-club channel and club copies of the 1956 book are catalogued by dealers. Club copies do not carry the 'First Edition' statement on the copyright page — that absence is the primary tell. Doubleday-era club jackets typically state 'Book Club Edition' at the lower front flap and carry no price at the flap, and club copies use lighter boards and bulked paper. Beware also the Nelson Doubleday/Science Fiction Book Club imprint, which is distinct from Doubleday & Company, Inc.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Dragon in the Sea* by Frank Herbert a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-dragon-in-the-sea
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.