The points of issue
Heaney's first collection after his 1995 Nobel Prize; won the 1996 Whitbread Poetry Award. UK Faber & Faber first printing, 1996: 'First published in 1996' with a full descending number line on the copyright page; dark green cloth boards lettered in gilt to spine, in dust jacket. US Farrar, Straus & Giroux is the first American printing.
Is this the true first?
UK Faber & Faber (1996) is the true first; the US FSG edition is the first American printing.
Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club issue. The first printing shows the complete descending number line; later printings advance it (a later printing shows, for example, a line beginning at 6).
Frequently asked questions
Is my copy of The Spirit Level a first edition?
Look for these first-edition points: Heaney's first collection after his 1995 Nobel Prize; won the 1996 Whitbread Poetry Award. UK Faber & Faber first printing, 1996: 'First published in 1996' with a full descending number line on the copyright page; dark green cloth boards lettered in gilt to spine, in dust jacket. US Farrar, Straus & Giroux is the first American printing.
How do I tell the first printing from a later one?
Check the copyright page for the publisher's first-printing convention and confirm the points above. UK Faber & Faber (1996) is the true first; the US FSG edition is the first American printing.
Is the book-club edition the same as the first?
No book-club issue. The first printing shows the complete descending number line; later printings advance it (a later printing shows, for example, a line beginning at 6).
I have a first edition of The Spirit Level — what should I do?
If you're clearing books, New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup in Albuquerque, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies aren't lost. To sell, see the author's collecting guide. Either way, nothing valuable ends up in a landfill.