# Is "The Ministry of Fear" by Graham Greene a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Ministry of Fear by Graham Greene (William Heinemann, 1943) is identified by: First printing of one of Greene's 'entertainments,' issued by William Heinemann in London in 1943, 236 pages. UK Heinemann 1943 is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing of one of Greene's 'entertainments,' issued by William Heinemann in London in 1943, 236 pages
- Because of wartime paper rationing the book was printed in a small run on poor-quality stock, so surviving copies are commonly worn and the dustwrapper is genuinely scarce
- Bound in publisher's boards (variously described as buff or gold/yellow) lettered in black on the spine, conforming to the wartime Book Production War Economy Standard
- The pictorial dustwrapper is printed in red and gold; a complete first-issue jacket should retain its printed front-flap price (do not assume a clipped jacket is later, as clipping is common)
- Later filmed by Fritz Lang
- Publisher imprint reads William Heinemann
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Graham Greene |
| Publisher | William Heinemann |
| Year | 1943 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing of one of Greene's 'entertainments,' issued by William Heinemann in London in 1943, 236 pages |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First printing of one of Greene's 'entertainments,' issued by William Heinemann in London in 1943, 236 pages. Because of wartime paper rationing the book was printed in a small run on poor-quality stock, so surviving copies are commonly worn and the dustwrapper is genuinely scarce. Bound in publisher's boards (variously described as buff or gold/yellow) lettered in black on the spine, conforming to the wartime Book Production War Economy Standard. The pictorial dustwrapper is printed in red and gold; a complete first-issue jacket should retain its printed front-flap price (do not assume a clipped jacket is later, as clipping is common). Later filmed by Fritz Lang.

## Is this the true first?
UK Heinemann 1943 is the true first. The first US edition (Viking, 1943) followed; the supposed US precedence is not supported and the UK edition is the accepted first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club printings appeared later.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Ministry of Fear* by Graham Greene a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-ministry-of-fear
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.