# Is "What's Become of Waring" by Anthony Powell a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of What's Become of Waring by Anthony Powell (Cassell, 1939) is identified by: First printing; Powell's fifth and last pre-war novel and the first not published by Duckworth, after Duckworth rejected it. London: Cassell, 1939 is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing
- Powell's fifth and last pre-war novel and the first not published by Duckworth, after Duckworth rejected it
- Issued in russet/brick-red cloth with blue spine titling
- Sold fewer than a thousand copies, with many lost early in the war, so scarce
- Publisher imprint reads Cassell
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Anthony Powell |
| Publisher | Cassell |
| Year | 1939 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First printing; Powell's fifth and last pre-war novel and the first not published by Duckworth, after Duckworth rejected it. Issued in russet/brick-red cloth with blue spine titling. Sold fewer than a thousand copies, with many lost early in the war, so scarce.

## Is this the true first?
London: Cassell, 1939 is the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *What's Become of Waring* by Anthony Powell a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/whats-become-of-waring
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.