# Is "The Luck of the Bodkins" by P.G. Wodehouse a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Luck of the Bodkins by P.G. Wodehouse (Herbert Jenkins, 1935) is identified by: First printing in publisher's cloth. UK Herbert Jenkins is the true first edition; the US Little, Brown edition followed in January 1936 with a shortened, rewritten text.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing in publisher's cloth
- The UK Herbert Jenkins edition (11 October 1935) is the true first and precedes the US Little, Brown edition (3 January 1936)
- Note that the two editions have substantially different texts: Wodehouse shortened the story for the US market, so the editions are not textually identical
- Publisher imprint reads Herbert Jenkins
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | P.G. Wodehouse |
| Publisher | Herbert Jenkins |
| Year | 1935 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing in publisher's cloth |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First printing in publisher's cloth. The UK Herbert Jenkins edition (11 October 1935) is the true first and precedes the US Little, Brown edition (3 January 1936). Note that the two editions have substantially different texts: Wodehouse shortened the story for the US market, so the editions are not textually identical.

## Is this the true first?
UK Herbert Jenkins is the true first edition; the US Little, Brown edition followed in January 1936 with a shortened, rewritten text.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition is a point for this title.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Luck of the Bodkins* by P.G. Wodehouse a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-luck-of-the-bodkins
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.