# Is "The Sea Around Us" by Rachel Carson a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Sea Around Us by Rachel Carson (Oxford University Press, 1951) is identified by: Oxford University Press (New York), published 2 July 1951, in blue cloth-backed boards with the page block sewn on green-and-white stitched cloth; the true first printing measures about 8.5 inches with straight-cut edges. The US Oxford University Press (New York) edition is the true first, published 2 July 1951; it won the 1952 National Book Award for Nonfiction and the John Burroughs Medal.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Oxford University Press (New York), published 2 July 1951, in blue cloth-backed boards with the page block sewn on green-and-white stitched cloth; the true first printing measures about 8.5 inches with straight-cut edges
- The copyright page reads 'Copyright 1950, 1951 by Rachel L. Carson / Printed in the United States of America' with no printing number stated
- The first-state binding is a dull (non-glossy) paper over boards; a later second state uses a plasticized glossy finish
- The first-state dust jacket has three horizontal bars at the top of the front flap, no reviewer blurbs and no price on the flap, 'The Strimbans' credit set about half an inch from the bottom right, an 'About the Author' note ending with 'coral reefs' on the back panel, and IRIS book advertisements on the rear jacket flap; the printed price should be present on the flap
- Publisher imprint reads Oxford University Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Rachel Carson |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
| Year | 1951 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Oxford University Press (New York), published 2 July 1951, in blue cloth-backed boards with the page block sewn on green-and-white stitched… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Oxford University Press (New York), published 2 July 1951, in blue cloth-backed boards with the page block sewn on green-and-white stitched cloth; the true first printing measures about 8.5 inches with straight-cut edges. The copyright page reads 'Copyright 1950, 1951 by Rachel L. Carson / Printed in the United States of America' with no printing number stated. The first-state binding is a dull (non-glossy) paper over boards; a later second state uses a plasticized glossy finish. The first-state dust jacket has three horizontal bars at the top of the front flap, no reviewer blurbs and no price on the flap, 'The Strimbans' credit set about half an inch from the bottom right, an 'About the Author' note ending with 'coral reefs' on the back panel, and IRIS book advertisements on the rear jacket flap; the printed price should be present on the flap.

## Is this the true first?
The US Oxford University Press (New York) edition is the true first, published 2 July 1951; it won the 1952 National Book Award for Nonfiction and the John Burroughs Medal. A UK Staples Press edition also appeared in 1951.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The book went through many printings within months. The first printing must lack any printing number on the copyright page; later Oxford printings state the printing number above the copyright notice. Book-club copies typically measure about 8.375 inches with a rough-cut front edge and no cloth backing to the page block. The second-state dust jacket adds John Kieran and Waldo L. Schmitt review blurbs to the front flap. The revised 1961 edition is a 'first thus,' not the true first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Sea Around Us* by Rachel Carson a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-sea-around-us
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.