# Is "Tough, Tough Toys for Tough, Tough Boys" by Will Self a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Tough, Tough Toys for Tough, Tough Boys by Will Self (Bloomsbury, 1998) is identified by: Story collection, first published in hardback April 1998 by Bloomsbury, London. The UK Bloomsbury edition of April 1998 is the true first, preceding the US Grove Press edition of 1999.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Story collection, first published in hardback April 1998 by Bloomsbury, London
- Publisher's original black paper-covered boards with gilt title and author lettering to the spine, black silk bookmark bound in
- 244 pages
- Dust jacket designed by William Webb, with the printed price present on the jacket flap
- The key first-issue text point is the printer's number row on the colophon page: the true first shows a single '1'; a later impression inserted a second '1' into the row, so a copy with two the printed price is not the first printing
- ISBN 0-7475-3906-5
- Publisher imprint reads Bloomsbury

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Will Self |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury |
| Year | 1998 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Story collection, first published in hardback April 1998 by Bloomsbury, London |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Story collection, first published in hardback April 1998 by Bloomsbury, London. Publisher's original black paper-covered boards with gilt title and author lettering to the spine, black silk bookmark bound in; 244 pages. Dust jacket designed by William Webb, with the printed price present on the jacket flap. The key first-issue text point is the printer's number row on the colophon page: the true first shows a single '1'; a later impression inserted a second '1' into the row, so a copy with two the printed price is not the first printing. ISBN 0-7475-3906-5.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Bloomsbury edition of April 1998 is the true first, preceding the US Grove Press edition of 1999.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club issue of note. Later impressions are identified by the doubled '1' in the number row and by an added impression statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Tough, Tough Toys for Tough, Tough Boys* by Will Self a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/tough-tough-toys-for-tough-tough-boys
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.