Is My Copy of The Sandman: Brief Lives a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Collects The Sandman #41-49, first printing 1994, issued in both trade paperback and hardcover with dust jacket
• Interior art by Jill Thompson and Vince Locke, with an afterword by Peter Straub; cover and jacket design by Dave McKean
• First printing carries ISBN 1-56389-138-7
• Later printings are noted in the indicia, so identify a first printing by the original ISBN, the printed cover price, and the absence of any later-printing statement rather than by a number line

How DC Comics / Vertigo marked a first edition

• Indicia/copyright page carries the publisher block ('Copyright © [year] DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.'), ISBN, and a printing statement: a first printing states 'First Printing', often with no later dates, or a single…
• Modern DC collected editions use a descending number line in the indicia ('10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1'); the lowest number present is the printing, so '1' present indicates a first printing.

Full DC Comics / Vertigo first-edition guide →

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. Read the indicia — a first-printing single issue carries no later-printing line; a collected edition is “first thus,” not the true first.
4. Verify this is the world true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

Format & printing

This title first appeared as a single issue / periodical, not a trade book. The true first is the first-printing single issue; later trade paperbacks or hardcover collections are “first thus.” Check the indicia (the small-print publication block) for a printing statement.

Is this the true first?

Collected first-thus. The monthly comics The Sandman #41-49 (1992-1993) are the true first appearances. Both the paperback and the hardcover appeared in 1994.P-022373

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No traditional number line is used; later printings state the printing in the indicia. A first printing shows the original ISBN, no reprint line, and the first-issue price on the rear panel.P-022374

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Sandman: Brief Lives a first edition?

A first edition of The Sandman: Brief Lives by Neil Gaiman (DC Comics / Vertigo) is identified by: Collects The Sandman #41-49, first printing 1994, issued in both trade paperback and hardcover with dust jacket.

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

Check the copyright page. For a single issue, the indicia shows the printing. Collected first-thus.

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

No traditional number line is used; later printings state the printing in the indicia. A first printing shows the original ISBN, no reprint line, and the first-issue price on the rear panel.

I have a first edition of The Sandman: Brief Lives — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

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.