Is My The First Men in the Moon a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first is the American Bowen-Merrill edition (Indianapolis, 1901), published in October 1901, illustrated by Emil Hering
• First-state binding has "Bowen-Merrill" at the foot of the spine panel and on the title page — the firm was renamed Bobbs-Merrill in 1903, so any copy showing "Bobbs-Merrill" is necessarily later
• Bound in decorated/pictorial blue cloth stamped in gilt, with the moon, author and title gilt-stamped on the front and the title blind-stamped to the rear board
• The London George Newnes edition
• , the first British edition and collected in its own right, is octavo, pp. [i-iv] v-vii [viii] [1] 2-342 [343-344: blank], the final leaf blank, with twelve inserted plates by Claude Shepperson, bound in decorated blue cloth with front and spine panels stamped in gold, black coated endpapers
• The two editions carry minor textual differences, so neither supersedes the other textually

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

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?

REFUTES the census claim. The census states the UK Newnes precedes the US Bowen-Merrill; the precedence runs the other way. Three independent dealer descriptions agree that the Bowen-Merrill (Indianapolis) edition preceded the George Newnes (London) edition by approximately one month, with the American edition appearing in October 1901: John W. Knott, Jr. (ABAA/ILAB), citing Currey p. 518 and Hammond B7; Arundel Books ("one month" before the UK Newnes edition); and Moe's Books ("Published in October, a month before Newnes edition in England"). The Bowen-Merrill is therefore the true first edition in book form — an exception to the usual pattern for Wells, whose scientific romances generally appear first in London. Both editions are collected and both should be named: Bowen-Merrill (Indianapolis) 1901 for precedence, Newnes (London) 1901 as the first British edition and the one carrying the twelve Shepperson plates. The novel was serialized in The Strand (London) and The Cosmopolitan (US) across 1900–1901, so the serial appearance precedes both book editions. Wikipedia records both 1901 editions but establishes no precedence and cites no source for sequence; it is not proof either way.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Grosset & Dunlap issued reprints printed from the original Bowen-Merrill sheets — these carry the G&D imprint at the foot of the spine and on the title page despite retaining the Bowen-Merrill text block, and are the most common trap for the American edition. Any spine or title page reading "Bobbs-Merrill" postdates the firm's 1903 renaming and cannot be the first state. No period book-club edition is documented.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The First Men in the Moon a first edition?

A first edition of The First Men in the Moon by H. G. Wells (Bowen-Merrill Company) is identified by: The true first is the American Bowen-Merrill edition (Indianapolis, 1901), published in October 1901, illustrated by Emil Hering.

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. REFUTES the census claim.

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

Grosset & Dunlap issued reprints printed from the original Bowen-Merrill sheets — these carry the G&D imprint at the foot of the spine and on the title page despite retaining the Bowen-Merrill text block, and are the most common trap for the American edition. Any spine or title page reading "Bobbs-Merrill" postdates the firm's 1903 renaming and cannot be the first state. No period book-club edition is documented.

I have a first edition of The First Men in the Moon — 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.