Is My To Say Nothing of the Dog a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First Bantam Spectra hardcover, 1998
• The full title as it appears is 'To Say Nothing of the Dog, or How We Found the Bishop's Bird Stump at Last.' Identify the first printing by the complete number line reading 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 on the copyright page; the presence of the 1 at the start of the line is the point, and later printings drop the lower numbers
• First-state trade jacket carries its original printed front-flap price (present and unclipped on a true first-issue example, though the printed price may sometimes be professionally clipped without affecting edition status)
• The book won the Hugo and Locus Awards and was a Nebula nominee, so the trade first is often found signed

How Bantam Spectra marked a first edition

• Copyright page printing statement: classic Bantam used a printed-line phrase such as 'Bantam edition / (date)' with a printing history; a true first lists only the first printing.
• Modern Bantam (post-merger) uses a descending number line; first printing retains '1' (e.g. '10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1').

Full Bantam Spectra 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 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?

The US Bantam Spectra 1998 hardcover is the true first. The UK New English Library edition (1999) is later.P-005205

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The Science Fiction Book Club edition is a separate book-club issue: it typically carries a blind-stamped mark on the rear board, lacks the printed price on the jacket flap, and uses lighter, thinner boards. Confirm the intact number line down to 1 and the priced trade jacket.P-005206

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of To Say Nothing of the Dog a first edition?

A first edition of To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis (Bantam Spectra) is identified by: First Bantam Spectra hardcover, 1998.

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 US Bantam Spectra 1998 hardcover is the true first.

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

The Science Fiction Book Club edition is a separate book-club issue: it typically carries a blind-stamped mark on the rear board, lacks the printed price on the jacket flap, and uses lighter, thinner boards. Confirm the intact number line down to 1 and the priced trade jacket.

I have a first edition of To Say Nothing of the Dog — 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.