Is My The Fifth Child a First Edition?

The points of issue

First published 1988 by Jonathan Cape, London, ISBN 0-224-02553-8; a slim octavo of roughly 133 pages measuring about 22.5 by 14.5 cm, bound in black boards lettered in gilt on the spine and issued in a printed dust jacket that should retain its original printed price.

How Jonathan Cape marked a first edition

• First printings state "First published [Year]" or "First published in Great Britain [Year]" on the copyright page with NO additional impression lines and traditionally NO number line
• Later printings noted by added lines (e.g. 'Second impression [year]', 'Reprinted...') — their presence disqualifies a first

Full Jonathan Cape first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. 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.
3. Verify this is the UK true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
4. 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.
5. 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 UK Jonathan Cape edition (1988) is the true first and is conventionally regarded as preceding the US Alfred A. Knopf edition of the same year; the Knopf issue is the first American edition and is distinguished by its quarter black cloth over brown boards with gilt spine lettering.P-006845

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No notable book-club edition; distinguish the UK Cape boards from the US Knopf quarter-cloth binding when identifying the first.P-006846

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Fifth Child a first edition?

A first edition of The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing (Jonathan Cape) is identified by: First published 1988 by Jonathan Cape, London, ISBN 0-224-02553-8; a slim octavo of roughly 133 pages measuring about 22.5 by 14.5 cm, bound in black boards lettered in gilt on the spine and issued in a printed dust jacket that should retain its original printed price.

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 UK Jonathan Cape edition (1988) is the true first and is conventionally regarded as preceding the US Alfred A.

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

No notable book-club edition; distinguish the UK Cape boards from the US Knopf quarter-cloth binding when identifying the first.

I have a first edition of The Fifth Child — 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.