# Is "The Return" by Bentley Little a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Return by Bentley Little (Signet, 2002) is identified by: Signet mass-market paperback original, September 2002 (ISBN 0-451-20687-8). US paperback original; no prior trade edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Signet mass-market paperback original, September 2002 (ISBN 0-451-20687-8)
- Descending number line on the copyright page for the first printing
- Publisher imprint reads Signet
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Bentley Little |
| Publisher | Signet |
| Year | 2002 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Signet mass-market paperback original, September 2002 (ISBN 0-451-20687-8) |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Signet mass-market paperback original, September 2002 (ISBN 0-451-20687-8). Descending number line on the copyright page for the first printing.

## Is this the true first?
US paperback original; no prior trade edition. The Signet paperback is the true first edition.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A large-print/book-club hardcover (Doubleday Direct/GK Hall, ISBN 073942739x) appeared but is a book-club/library edition, not the true first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Return* by Bentley Little a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-return
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.