# Is "The South" by Colm Toibin a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The South by Colm Toibin (Serpent's Tail, 1990) is identified by: Toibin's debut novel, a Serpent's Tail paperback original, London, 1990 (ISBN 1852421703), with French flaps; first edition, first impression. The UK Serpent's Tail (1990) paperback original is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Toibin's debut novel, a Serpent's Tail paperback original, London, 1990 (ISBN 1852421703), with French flaps; first edition, first impression
- Won the Irish Times/Aer Lingus First Fiction Award and was shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award
- Genuinely scarce as a true first
- Publisher imprint reads Serpent's Tail
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Colm Toibin |
| Publisher | Serpent's Tail |
| Year | 1990 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Toibin's debut novel, a Serpent's Tail paperback original, London, 1990 (ISBN 1852421703), with French flaps; first edition, first… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Toibin's debut novel, a Serpent's Tail paperback original, London, 1990 (ISBN 1852421703), with French flaps; first edition, first impression. Won the Irish Times/Aer Lingus First Fiction Award and was shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award. Genuinely scarce as a true first.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Serpent's Tail (1990) paperback original is the true first. The later Picador edition is a revised/reset text (a 'first thus' of the revision). A US Viking edition followed in 1991.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The Picador revised edition and later reprints are not the true first; collectors should expect the original to be a paperback original rather than a hardcover.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The South* by Colm Toibin a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-south
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.