Is My The Taking of Pelham One Two Three a First Edition?

The points of issue

• There is no first-edition statement and no number line to look for: Putnam's practice before 1985 was to put no statement on first editions but to note subsequent printings (Quill & Brush), so the point of issue is a clean copyright page — the first printing carries no impression or printing line at all
• Later trade copies state their printing outright, and dealer records for this title confirm the practice in the wild, describing copies as '3rd impression' and '3rd. printing.' Binding: publisher's blue cloth, titled in gilt to the spine, 316 pages, with subway-map endpapers
• Pictorial jacket; a first-issue jacket is a priced jacket with the price present at the flap, and clipped jackets are common

How G. P. Putnam's Sons marked a first edition

• PRE-1928 (early independent house): Putnam printed NO first-edition statement. Identify a first by matching the copyright-page year to the title-page year with no reprint/later-printing notice on the copyright page. Afte…

Full G. P. Putnam's Sons 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. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
4. Verify this is the UK 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?

The census claim is confirmed as to the true first — G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York, 1973 — but it omits a UK edition that is separately collected: Hodder & Stoughton published the UK hardcover the same year (ISBN 0340175524), followed by a Coronet paperback in 1974. Godey was American and Putnam was his publisher, so US precedence is the accepted order, though no month-level date was established for either side. Caution: the Kirkus record for this title carries an anomalous 'Feb. 27, 1972' pub-date field that contradicts the universally recorded 1973 publication and should not be cited. First-thus traps: the 1974 Dell paperback, the 1974 film tie-in issue, and the later Berkley reissues.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Club printings circulate and dealers flag trade copies as 'Not a book club,' which establishes that a club issue exists — but no title-specific club collation was located in the sources consulted. Only the general tells apply: no price present at the jacket flap, a blind-stamped device to the rear board, and lighter bulk than the Putnam trade issue.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three a first edition?

A first edition of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three by John Godey (G. P. Putnam's Sons) is identified by: There is no first-edition statement and no number line to look for: Putnam's practice before 1985 was to put no statement on first editions but to note subsequent printings (Quill & Brush), so the point of issue is a clean copyright page — the first printing carries no impression or printing line at all.

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

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). The census claim is confirmed as to the true first — G.

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

Club printings circulate and dealers flag trade copies as 'Not a book club,' which establishes that a club issue exists — but no title-specific club collation was located in the sources consulted. Only the general tells apply: no price present at the jacket flap, a blind-stamped device to the rear board, and lighter bulk than the Putnam trade issue.

I have a first edition of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

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.