# Is "The Sandman: The Wake" by Neil Gaiman a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Sandman: The Wake by Neil Gaiman (DC Comics / Vertigo, 1997) is identified by: Collects Sandman #70-75 (with three lost pages restored) plus The Tempest, with an introduction by Mikal Gilmore and a Dave McKean cover design; art by Michael Zulli, Jon J. Collected first-thus concluding the main series.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Collects Sandman #70-75 (with three lost pages restored) plus The Tempest, with an introduction by Mikal Gilmore and a Dave McKean cover design; art by Michael Zulli, Jon J. Muth and Charles Vess
- The 1997 first-printing hardcover was issued in green boards with a photographic paste-down image on the front and no dust jacket as issued; the copyright page carries no later-printing statement
- A first-printing softcover appeared the same year
- Correct publisher/imprint: DC Comics / Vertigo

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Neil Gaiman |
| Publisher | DC Comics / Vertigo |
| Year | 1997 |
| True first | world edition |
| Format | Comic / graphic novel |
| Key point | Collects Sandman #70-75 (with three lost pages restored) plus The Tempest, with an… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Collects Sandman #70-75 (with three lost pages restored) plus The Tempest, with an introduction by Mikal Gilmore and a Dave McKean cover design; art by Michael Zulli, Jon J. Muth and Charles Vess. The 1997 first-printing hardcover was issued in green boards with a photographic paste-down image on the front and no dust jacket as issued; the copyright page carries no later-printing statement. A first-printing softcover appeared the same year.

## Is this the true first?
Collected first-thus concluding the main series. The 1997 hardcover and softcover were both first printings; the record's TPB-only framing is too narrow. The hardcover was issued without a jacket, so jacket-price points do not apply.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later printings are indicated on the copyright page.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Sandman: The Wake* by Neil Gaiman a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-sandman-the-wake
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.