Is My Copy of The Strain a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The first printing is the William Morrow (New York) hardcover of 2009, ISBN 0061558230 / 9780061558238, 401 pp., published 2 June 2009
• The copyright page carries a stated "First edition" together with the publisher's first-printing number code sequence running 1 through 10
• This title has a genuine jacket point of issue: the first-issue dust jacket has a "peek-a-boo" die-cut in the front panel and raised lettering on the front panel; later issues are NOT cut out
• The first-issue jacket also carries a printed date code "0609" at the front inner flap, and should be a priced jacket with the price present at the flap
• Binding: glossy red and black illustrated boards with cream/white lettering to the spine, red endpapers, and plum headband and tailband
• Jacket design by Ervin Serrano

How William Morrow, New York marked a first edition

• 1990–present (HarperCollins): imprint reads 'HarperCollins' (News Corp merged Harper & Row with the UK's William Collins in 1990). Through the 1990s a first printing shows 'FIRST EDITION' on the copyright page together…

Full William Morrow, New York first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Verify this is the US true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
6. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

US and UK were genuinely simultaneous. The William Morrow hardcover (New York) is dated 2 June 2009 and the HarperCollins UK hardcover, ISBN 0007310250 / 9780007310258, is likewise dated 2 June 2009. Both are collected; the Morrow is the copy carrying the documented die-cut first-issue jacket point, and is the edition dealers describe in detail. Written in English, so no original-language question arises.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No US book-club issue is documented. The decisive reprint tell is the jacket: a later-issue jacket has a solid (uncut) front panel where the first issue is die-cut, so a copy in an uncut jacket is not in first-issue state regardless of the copyright page. Additional reprint tells are loss of the "First edition" statement and a number line no longer running to 1. Absence of the "0609" flap date code is a further caution.P-041192

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Strain a first edition?

A first edition of The Strain by Guillermo del Toro & Chuck Hogan (William Morrow, New York) is identified by: The first printing is the William Morrow (New York) hardcover of 2009, ISBN 0061558230 / 9780061558238, 401 pp., published 2 June 2009.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. US and UK were genuinely simultaneous.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

No US book-club issue is documented. The decisive reprint tell is the jacket: a later-issue jacket has a solid (uncut) front panel where the first issue is die-cut, so a copy in an uncut jacket is not in first-issue state regardless of the copyright page. Additional reprint tells are loss of the "First edition" statement and a number line no longer running to 1. Absence of the "0609" flap date code is a further caution.

I have a first edition of The Strain — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.