Is My The Room in the Tower and Other Stories a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Octavo, collating pp. [i-iv] v [vi] vii [viii] 1-338 [339-344: advertisements], with a 32-page undated publisher's catalogue inserted at the rear
• Bound in original maroon cloth, front and spine panels stamped in gold, publisher's monogram stamped in blind on the rear panel, bottom edge untrimmed
• The copyright page reads 'Published 1912' and carries 'Copyright in the United States of America, 1912, by E. F. Benson'; the title page imprint reads Mills & Boon, Limited, 49 Rupert Street, London W. Critically, 'Published 1912' alone is NOT sufficient — the Mills & Boon second edition retains the identical 'Published 1912' line and adds 'Second Edition' to the title page, so the first printing point is the presence of 'Published 1912' together with the ABSENCE of any edition statement

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Verify this is the US true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
6. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

The London Mills & Boon 1912 edition is the true first, and there is no competing contemporary US edition — the census claim is confirmed. This is Benson's first collection of ghost stories, seventeen tales. The US did not see a separate edition until Alfred A. Knopf reissued it in 1929, which is a 'first thus' trap: the Knopf is markedly commoner than the Mills & Boon and is regularly mis-offered as a first.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club issue documented for the 1912 printing. The two documented traps are the Mills & Boon second edition of the same year — same 'Published 1912' copyright line, but 'Second Edition' stated — and the Alfred A. Knopf 1929 American reissue. Later leather-bound copies offered as 1912 firsts are rebindings, not publisher's issue; the original binding is publisher's maroon cloth with the blind rear monogram.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Room in the Tower and Other Stories a first edition?

A first edition of The Room in the Tower and Other Stories by E. F. Benson (Mills & Boon, Limited, London) is identified by: [i-iv] v [vi] vii [viii] 1-338 [339-344: advertisements], with a 32-page undated publisher's catalogue inserted at the rear.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. The London Mills & Boon 1912 edition is the true first, and there is no competing contemporary US edition — the census claim is confirmed.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

No book-club issue documented for the 1912 printing. The two documented traps are the Mills & Boon second edition of the same year — same 'Published 1912' copyright line, but 'Second Edition' stated — and the Alfred A. Knopf 1929 American reissue. Later leather-bound copies offered as 1912 firsts are rebindings, not publisher's issue; the original binding is publisher's maroon cloth with the blind rear monogram.

I have a first edition of The Room in the Tower and Other Stories — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.