The points of issue
UK Hodder & Stoughton first edition, London, 1955, publisher's cloth with pictorial dust jacket, around 256 pages. This novel won the inaugural Crime Writers' Association award for 1955, then called the Crossed Red Herring Award and later renamed the Gold Dagger, making it the first title in that award lineage. Confirm the Hodder & Stoughton imprint and 1955 dating with no later-impression statement.
Is this the true first?
UK Hodder & Stoughton 1955 is the true first. A US Doubleday edition followed in 1955 under the same title and is a first-thus. A separately abridged US version titled Bridge to Vengeance appeared later (Spivak, 1957) and is a different, abridged text rather than the true first.
Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Hodder reprints, book-club issues, and the abridged Bridge to Vengeance text are not the true first. The genuine first carries the Hodder & Stoughton London imprint dated 1955.
Frequently asked questions
Is my copy of The Little Walls a first edition?
Look for these first-edition points: UK Hodder & Stoughton first edition, London, 1955, publisher's cloth with pictorial dust jacket, around 256 pages. This novel won the inaugural Crime Writers' Association award for 1955, then called the Crossed Red Herring Award and later renamed the Gold Dagger, making it the first title in that award lineage. Confirm the Hodder & Stoughton imprint and 1955 dating with no later-impression statement.
How do I tell the first printing from a later one?
Check the copyright page for the publisher's first-printing convention and confirm the points above. UK Hodder & Stoughton 1955 is the true first. A US Doubleday edition followed in 1955 under the same title and is a first-thus. A separately abridged US version titled Bridge to Vengeance appeared later (Spivak, 1957) and is a different, abridged text rather than the true first.
Is the book-club edition the same as the first?
Later Hodder reprints, book-club issues, and the abridged Bridge to Vengeance text are not the true first. The genuine first carries the Hodder & Stoughton London imprint dated 1955.
I have a first edition of The Little Walls — what should I do?
If you're clearing books, New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup in Albuquerque, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies aren't lost. To sell, see the author's collecting guide. Either way, nothing valuable ends up in a landfill.