# Is "The Less Deceived" by Philip Larkin a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Less Deceived by Philip Larkin (The Marvell Press, 1955) is identified by: The Marvell Press first edition, 1955, carries the Hessle, East Yorkshire imprint. The Marvell Press edition (Hessle, 1955) is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The Marvell Press first edition, 1955, carries the Hessle, East Yorkshire imprint
- First-issue points: a flat (not rounded) spine; the misprint 'floor' for 'sea' in the first line of 'Absences'; the dust jacket with its printed price with the rear panel printed in black only; and a printed list of subscribers on the unnumbered pages 44 and 45
- The first 300 copies were bound with a flat spine for late-1955 distribution; the remaining copies were later bound with a rounded spine
- Publisher imprint reads The Marvell Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Philip Larkin |
| Publisher | The Marvell Press |
| Year | 1955 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Poetry |
| Key point | The Marvell Press first edition, 1955, carries the Hessle, East Yorkshire imprint |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
The Marvell Press first edition, 1955, carries the Hessle, East Yorkshire imprint. First-issue points: a flat (not rounded) spine; the misprint 'floor' for 'sea' in the first line of 'Absences'; the dust jacket with its printed price with the rear panel printed in black only; and a printed list of subscribers on the unnumbered pages 44 and 45. The first 300 copies were bound with a flat spine for late-1955 distribution; the remaining copies were later bound with a rounded spine.

## Is this the true first?
The Marvell Press edition (Hessle, 1955) is the true first. Faber never published the true first of this title. Confirm the flat spine, the 'floor'/'sea' misprint, the printed price jacket, and the subscriber list on pages 44-45.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition. Later impressions reset the type, correct the misprint, and omit the subscriber list.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Less Deceived* by Philip Larkin a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-less-deceived
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.