Is My The Green Hills of Earth a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Shasta Publishers first edition, Chicago, 1951
• Quarter black cloth over green paper-covered boards; cover and jacket art by Hubert Rogers
• Jacket priced
• A separate issue of subscriber's copies was signed by Heinlein on an inserted leaf; these exist in an undetermined quantity and are not a formally numbered or limited edition
• Second volume in the Future History series

How Shasta Publishers marked a first edition

• Shasta first editions are identified by an explicit 'First Edition' statement printed on the copyright page (a positive notation), NOT by the absence of later-printing language. Standard reference: the copyright page rea…
• Confirm physical issue points where documented per title (e.g., boards with cloth shelf back on the Heinlein titles) and a correct-state first-issue dust jacket with the original printed price; jacket art alone is not a…

Full Shasta Publishers 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 Shasta first edition is the true first.P-026848

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No simultaneous book club edition of note; later reprints lack the Shasta imprint and Rogers jacket.P-026849

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Green Hills of Earth a first edition?

A first edition of The Green Hills of Earth by Robert A. Heinlein (Shasta Publishers) is identified by: Shasta Publishers first edition, Chicago, 1951.

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 Shasta first edition is the true first.

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

No simultaneous book club edition of note; later reprints lack the Shasta imprint and Rogers jacket.

I have a first edition of The Green Hills of Earth — 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.