# Is "The Silkworm" by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling) a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling) (Sphere / Little, Brown, 2014) is identified by: Copyright page reads 'First published in Great Britain in 2014 by Sphere' with a full descending number line to 1. UK Sphere hardcover is the true first (June 2014).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Copyright page reads 'First published in Great Britain in 2014 by Sphere' with a full descending number line to 1
- The US first was published by Mulholland Books (Little, Brown) in 2014, also with a full number line to 1
- Publisher imprint reads Sphere / Little, Brown
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling) |
| Publisher | Sphere / Little, Brown |
| Year | 2014 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | Copyright page reads 'First published in Great Britain in 2014 by Sphere' with a full… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Copyright page reads 'First published in Great Britain in 2014 by Sphere' with a full descending number line to 1. The US first was published by Mulholland Books (Little, Brown) in 2014, also with a full number line to 1.

## Is this the true first?
UK Sphere hardcover is the true first (June 2014). By this point Rowling's authorship of the Galbraith novels was public, so print runs were large and the identification points are conventional first-edition indicators.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Reprints and book-club issues advance or omit the number line; no special first-issue text points are reported for this title.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Silkworm* by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling) a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-silkworm
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.