Is My The Easter Parade a First Edition?

The points of issue

• True first edition: Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence, New York, 1976
• Yates's fourth novel, 229 pp
• The first printing states 'First Printing' on the copyright page
• Binding is blue cloth with a yellow top-stain; the first-issue dust jacket is priced and unclipped at the front flap
• An uncorrected proof exists in tall red wrappers with the title inked on the spine

How Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence marked a first edition

• "First printing" or "First Edition" stated on the copyright page, frequently paired with a number line ending in 1
• Vonnegut-era Delacorte / Seymour Lawrence books: look for an explicit "First printing" statement on the copyright page (e.g. Slaughterhouse-Five is a stated first printing)

Full Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence 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 Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence (New York), 1976 is the true first. A first UK edition followed from Eyre Methuen, London, 1978 (jacket using Edward Hopper's Nighthawks) — so the census's 'no contemporary UK edition' is only loosely accurate: a UK first exists but is two years later and does not affect precedence.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Critical trap: The Easter Parade was a Book-of-the-Month Club selection, and the BOMC printing is nearly identical to the trade first AND likewise reads 'First Printing' on the copyright page — the statement alone will NOT distinguish it. Identify the club copy by the blind-stamped device on the rear board and a jacket with the price absent from the flap; the trade first has the price present at the flap.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Easter Parade a first edition?

A first edition of The Easter Parade by Richard Yates (Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence) is identified by: True first edition: Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence, New York, 1976; Yates's fourth novel, 229 pp.

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 Delacorte Press/Seymour Lawrence (New York), 1976 is the true first.

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

Critical trap: The Easter Parade was a Book-of-the-Month Club selection, and the BOMC printing is nearly identical to the trade first AND likewise reads 'First Printing' on the copyright page — the statement alone will NOT distinguish it. Identify the club copy by the blind-stamped device on the rear board and a jacket with the price absent from the flap; the trade first has the price present at the flap.

I have a first edition of The Easter Parade — 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.