The points of issue
Mostly accurate, with one factual error in the jacket description and a missing sharper point. CONFIRMED: - Full number line "1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2" (i.e., ending such that the lowest numeral 1 is present) on the copyright page = first printing. Correct. - Dust jacket priced the printed price US (Canadian the printed price). An unclipped flap showing the printed price is the correct first-state price. Correct. - Scribner imprint; US Scribner 1997 is the TRUE FIRST. UK Picador hardcover is 1998 (later). Correct. (Note: a Picador uncorrected proof and an Australian release circulated in late 1997, but the US Scribner hardcover remains the recognized true first.) - Signed copies are the premium. Correct. Note a distinct "not for sale" signed issue exists (tipped-in signed leaf, "not for sale" on the jacket back, no price on the flap) — a separate state, not the trade first. CORRECTION (jacket): The claim calls it the "black-and-white Manhattan/church jacket." The defining image is André Kertész's 1972 photograph of the World Trade Center TWIN TOWERS shrouded in fog, with a church steeple and cross in the foreground (front = positive image, rear = negative/inverted). The phrase "Manhattan/church" omits the single most identifying element — the Twin Towers. Reword to: "the black-and-white André Kertész photo of the World Trade Center towers with a church/cross in the foreground." ADD (stronger first-issue point): The front jacket reads "a novel by the author of LIBRA and WHITE NOISE." The Advance Reader's Copy reverses this to "by the author of WHITE NOISE and LIBRA" — a useful tell to distinguish the trade first from the ARC. Sources: FEDPO (fedpo.com/BookDetail.php/Underworld), Perival DeLillo bibliography (perival.com/delillo/underworld.html), Wikipedia "Underworld (novel)", aphelis.net on the Kertész 1972 photo.
Is this the true first?
US Scribner is the true first; UK Picador is later. Signed copies are the premium.
Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club edition lacks the full number line, has a blind-stamp, and a price-absent jacket.
Frequently asked questions
Is my copy of Underworld a first edition?
Look for these first-edition points: Mostly accurate, with one factual error in the jacket description and a missing sharper point. CONFIRMED: - Full number line "1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2" (i.e., ending such that the lowest numeral 1 is present) on the copyright page = first printing. Correct. - Dust jacket priced the printed price US (Canadian the printed price). An unclipped flap showing the printed price is the correct first-state price. Correct. - Scribner imprint; US Scribner 1997 is the TRUE FIRST. UK Picador hardcover is 1998 (later). Correct. (Note: a Picador uncorrected proof and an Austr
How do I tell the first printing from a later one?
Check the copyright page for the publisher's first-printing convention and confirm the points above. US Scribner is the true first; UK Picador is later. Signed copies are the premium.
Is the book-club edition the same as the first?
Book-club edition lacks the full number line, has a blind-stamp, and a price-absent jacket.
I have a first edition of Underworld — what should I do?
If you're clearing books, New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup in Albuquerque, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies aren't lost. To sell, see the author's collecting guide. Either way, nothing valuable ends up in a landfill.