# Is "The Elected Member" by Bernice Rubens a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Elected Member by Bernice Rubens (Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1969) is identified by: First UK edition 1969, Eyre & Spottiswoode. UK Eyre & Spottiswoode edition is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First UK edition 1969, Eyre & Spottiswoode. 'First published 1969' on the verso with no additional printings stated
- Original cloth in dust jacket
- Won the 1970 Booker Prize
- Rubens was the first woman to win
- Publisher imprint reads Eyre & Spottiswoode
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Bernice Rubens |
| Publisher | Eyre & Spottiswoode |
| Year | 1969 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First UK edition 1969, Eyre & Spottiswoode. 'First published 1969' on the verso with no additional printings stated |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First UK edition 1969, Eyre & Spottiswoode. 'First published 1969' on the verso with no additional printings stated. Original cloth in dust jacket. Won the 1970 Booker Prize; Rubens was the first woman to win.

## Is this the true first?
UK Eyre & Spottiswoode edition is the true first. The US edition was retitled 'Chosen People' (Atheneum, New York, 1969), so a US-titled copy is not the true first of the work as the author first published it.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
US edition retitled 'Chosen People' (Atheneum); any copy under that title is not the UK first. No prominent book-club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Elected Member* by Bernice Rubens a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-elected-member
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.