Is My The Years (Les Années) a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first is the French original, issued in Gallimard's Collection Blanche and published 7 February 2008 (parution "07/02/2008" per Gallimard's own listing
• ISBN 9782070779222 / 207077922X), a 256-page softcover in the collection's cream/ivory printed wrappers with the black-and-red-ruled frame and the NRF monogram — Collection Blanche titles are issued in wrappers, not a publisher's hardcover, so the correct first-edition object is the wrappered copy (approx
• 20.5 x 13.7 cm)
• Identify the first printing by the "achevé d'imprimer" statement dated to early 2008 and the absence of any later-printing line; trade copies are unnumbered
• A deluxe numbered large-paper (grand papier / tirage de tête) state cannot be documented for this specific title, so do not assume one exists; if a numbered large-paper copy were confirmed it would be the most desirable state
• Do NOT accept the Folio pocket paperback (Folio no

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

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 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 true first is the French Les Années (Gallimard, Collection Blanche, 7 February 2008) — the book serious Ernaux collectors want. English buyers should note a common trap: the first English edition was NOT the well-known UK Fitzcarraldo printing. Alison L. Strayer's translation was first published in the US by Seven Stories Press (New York) as a paperback on 21 November 2017 (ISBN 9781609807870); the Fitzcarraldo Editions UK edition (ISBN 9781910695791) followed on 20 June 2018. So the Seven Stories 2017 printing is the true first in English; Fitzcarraldo is the first UK edition. Strayer's translation won the 2018 French-American Foundation Translation Prize (non-fiction) and was shortlisted for the 2019 International Booker Prize.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No mass-market book-club edition (e.g., BOMC or Franklin Library) is a notable trap for this title. The realistic "not the first" traps are: the Gallimard Folio pocket paperback (Folio no. 5000), by far the most common copy in the market; the 2018 Fitzcarraldo UK edition mistaken for the first English (it is second, after Seven Stories in November 2017); and later Gallimard reprints in identical-looking wrappers carrying a later "achevé d'imprimer" date. Always check the printing statement.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Years (Les Années) a first edition?

A first edition of The Years (Les Années) by Annie Ernaux (Éditions Gallimard, Collection Blanche) is identified by: The true first is the French original, issued in Gallimard's Collection Blanche and published 7 February 2008 (parution "07/02/2008" per Gallimard's own listing; ISBN 9782070779222 / 207077922X), a 256-page softcover in the collection's cream/ivory printed wrappers with the black-and-red-ruled frame and the NRF monogram — Collection Blanche titles are issued in wrappers, not a publisher's hardcover, so the correct first-edition object is the wrappered copy (approx.

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. The true first is the French Les Années (Gallimard, Collection Blanche, 7 February 2008) — the book serious Ernaux collectors want.

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

No mass-market book-club edition (e.g., BOMC or Franklin Library) is a notable trap for this title. The realistic "not the first" traps are: the Gallimard Folio pocket paperback (Folio no. 5000), by far the most common copy in the market; the 2018 Fitzcarraldo UK edition mistaken for the first English (it is second, after Seven Stories in November 2017); and later Gallimard reprints in identical-looking wrappers carrying a later "achevé d'imprimer" date. Always check the printing statement.

I have a first edition of The Years (Les Années) — 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.