# Is "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle (World Publishing, 1969) is identified by: First edition, first printing: The World Publishing Company (New York and Cleveland), 1969, with die-cut pages. The US World Publishing edition (1969) is the true first and precedes the UK by a full year: the UK Hamish Hamilton edition did not appear until 1970 (an oblong format with white glazed pictorial boards).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, first printing: The World Publishing Company (New York and Cleveland), 1969, with die-cut pages
- First-printing tests: a COMPLETE number line on the copyright page ending in 1 — '1 2 3 4 5 73 72 71 70 69'; 'Printed in Japan' on the copyright page (the die-cut construction had to be printed in Japan); the code 'A3450' at the lower rear board; and the World Publishing imprint on the title page
- Later World printings drop the '1' from the front of the number line, so a line beginning '2 3 4 5…' is not a first
- Publisher imprint reads World Publishing
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Eric Carle |
| Publisher | World Publishing |
| Year | 1969 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | First edition, first printing: The World Publishing Company (New York and Cleveland), 1969, with die-cut pages |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition, first printing: The World Publishing Company (New York and Cleveland), 1969, with die-cut pages. First-printing tests: a COMPLETE number line on the copyright page ending in 1 — '1 2 3 4 5 73 72 71 70 69'; 'Printed in Japan' on the copyright page (the die-cut construction had to be printed in Japan); the code 'A3450' at the lower rear board; and the World Publishing imprint on the title page. Later World printings drop the '1' from the front of the number line, so a line beginning '2 3 4 5…' is not a first.

## Is this the true first?
The US World Publishing edition (1969) is the true first and precedes the UK by a full year: the UK Hamish Hamilton edition did not appear until 1970 (an oblong format with white glazed pictorial boards). Precedence is therefore NOT 'close' — World Publishing 1969, with the complete number line and 'Printed in Japan,' is the collected first. US rights later moved to Philomel/Putnam, and even early Philomel copies are reprints, not firsts.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club and later Philomel/Putnam printings carry different imprints and later copyright pages and lack the World Publishing masthead, the 'Printed in Japan' line, and the complete '…71 70 69 / 1' number line; a 'World–Collins' imprint indicates a post-1974 printing. Club copies typically lack the price at the flap.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Very Hungry Caterpillar* by Eric Carle a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-very-hungry-caterpillar
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.