Is My Wind, Sand and Stars a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First American / first English-language edition: Reynal & Hitchcock, New York, 1939 (trade published 20 June 1939), translated by Lewis Galantière
• The true first US issue is the signed, numbered limited edition of 500 copies, which precedes the trade issue; the trade first is in quarter black cloth over blue patterned cloth boards with gilt lettering to front and spine, with pictorial endpapers and duotone illustrations by John O'Hara Cosgrave II (306 pp.), in a priced jacket (price present at the flap)
• A first printing shows no statement of a later printing

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 American 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 original-language French first is 'Terre des hommes,' Éditions Gallimard, Paris, February 1939 (Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française). The English 'Wind, Sand and Stars' (Reynal & Hitchcock, New York, June 1939) is NOT a straight translation: Saint-Exupéry cut passages and added new material written for the American audience, so the French and English are two substantially different texts — both are collected. Within the US edition, the signed 500-copy limited issue is the earliest state, ahead of the trade.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The true first US issue is the signed/numbered limited edition of 500 copies; unsigned copies are the trade issue. Later Reynal & Hitchcock trade printings and the many mid-century reissues follow the 1939 first — check for the absence of any later-printing notice on the copyright page.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Wind, Sand and Stars a first edition?

A first edition of Wind, Sand and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupery (Editions Gallimard, Paris) is identified by: First American / first English-language edition: Reynal & Hitchcock, New York, 1939 (trade published 20 June 1939), translated by Lewis Galantière.

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 original-language French first is 'Terre des hommes,' Éditions Gallimard, Paris, February 1939 (Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française).

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

The true first US issue is the signed/numbered limited edition of 500 copies; unsigned copies are the trade issue. Later Reynal & Hitchcock trade printings and the many mid-century reissues follow the 1939 first — check for the absence of any later-printing notice on the copyright page.

I have a first edition of Wind, Sand and Stars — 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.