Is My The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First printing carries the Little, Brown first-edition statement together with a complete number line descending to 1 on the copyright page
• ISBN 0316082511
• , a substantial hardcover of roughly 573 pages
• The first-issue dust jacket is priced and should be present unclipped, the printed price appearing at the top of the front flap

How Little, Brown and Company marked a first edition

• From 1940 onward: Little, Brown adopted an explicit statement, printing 'First Edition' OR 'First Printing' on the copyright page of a first printing. Presence of that phrase, with no overriding later-printing line, deno…
• Late 1970s onward: Little, Brown added a descending number line to the copyright page. Per the trade-house standard, the first printing is present only when the line still contains a '1' (e.g., '10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1'); t…

Full Little, Brown and Company 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. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
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?

True first is the 1991 Little, Brown and Company edition, Boston.P-014916

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No major book club issue is recorded for this title; confirm the first printing by the first-edition statement plus the full number line reaching 1.P-014917

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor a first edition?

A first edition of The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor by John Barth (Little, Brown and Company) is identified by: First printing carries the Little, Brown first-edition statement together with a complete number line descending to 1 on the copyright page; ISBN 0316082511 (9780316082518), a substantial hardcover of roughly 573 pages.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). True first is the 1991 Little, Brown and Company edition, Boston.

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

No major book club issue is recorded for this title; confirm the first printing by the first-edition statement plus the full number line reaching 1.

I have a first edition of The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor — 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.