# Is "The Secret Commonwealth (Book of Dust 2)" by Philip Pullman a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Secret Commonwealth (Book of Dust 2) by Philip Pullman (David Fickling / Penguin Random House, 2019) is identified by: UK David Fickling Books / Penguin first, published 3 October 2019, with a full number line reading down to 1 on the copyright page. UK David Fickling/Penguin true first (3 October 2019), issued at or ahead of the US Knopf edition of the same year.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- UK David Fickling Books / Penguin first, published 3 October 2019, with a full number line reading down to 1 on the copyright page
- Publisher's black boards with gilt speckling and lettering to spine, illustrated endpapers, chapter headpieces by Chris Wormell
- First-state unclipped dust jacket
- A separate Waterstones exclusive edition also exists
- Publisher imprint reads David Fickling / Penguin Random House
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Philip Pullman |
| Publisher | David Fickling / Penguin Random House |
| Year | 2019 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | UK David Fickling Books / Penguin first, published 3 October 2019, with a full number… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
UK David Fickling Books / Penguin first, published 3 October 2019, with a full number line reading down to 1 on the copyright page. Publisher's black boards with gilt speckling and lettering to spine, illustrated endpapers, chapter headpieces by Chris Wormell. First-state unclipped dust jacket. A separate Waterstones exclusive edition also exists.

## Is this the true first?
UK David Fickling/Penguin true first (3 October 2019), issued at or ahead of the US Knopf edition of the same year.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later printings advance (shorten) the number line.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Secret Commonwealth (Book of Dust 2)* by Philip Pullman a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-secret-commonwealth-book-of-dust-2
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.