# Is "The Shipping News" by Annie Proulx a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Shipping News by Annie Proulx (Charles Scribner's Sons, 1993) is identified by: First printing with the Scribner number line and no later-printing statement; dust jacket bearing the printed price, unclipped. US Scribner's is the true first; the UK 4th Estate edition (1993) follows.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing with the Scribner number line and no later-printing statement; dust jacket bearing the printed price, unclipped
- Won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award; the first-state jacket carries no award stickers or printed award text
- Byline "E. Annie Proulx."
- Publisher imprint reads Charles Scribner's Sons
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Annie Proulx |
| Publisher | Charles Scribner's Sons |
| Year | 1993 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing with the Scribner number line and no later-printing statement; dust jacket bearing the printed price, unclipped |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First printing with the Scribner number line and no later-printing statement; dust jacket bearing the printed price, unclipped. Won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award; the first-state jacket carries no award stickers or printed award text. Byline "E. Annie Proulx."

## Is this the true first?
US Scribner's is the true first; the UK 4th Estate edition (1993) follows. The most-collected Proulx title; fine first-state jacketed copies are prized.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-of-the-Month Club editions are smaller, lack the number line, are blind-stamped on the rear board, and have no printed price on the jacket; later printings carry a printing statement and may add the Pulitzer/NBA to the jacket.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Shipping News* by Annie Proulx a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-shipping-news-annie-proulx
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.