Is My Copy of 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
• 5000) or any later reprint as the first edition

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.P-001833

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.P-001834

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. 20.5 x 13.7…

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. 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.