Is My Wind, Sand and Stars (Terre des hommes) a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First American trade edition: Reynal & Hitchcock, New York, 1939, translated by Lewis Galantière; octavo, 306 pp., with pictorial endpapers by John O'Hara Cosgrave II. Binding is half black cloth (black cloth spine, title in gilt) with blue patterned paper-covered boards and the top edge stained blue; the first printing shows no additional printings/impressions stated on the copyright page
• In the U.S. the trade issue (released June 20, 1939) was preceded by a signed limited edition of 500 copies, which is the first English-language printing
• The dust jacket has the price present at the flap (priced jacket)

How Reynal & Hitchcock marked a first edition

• Until 1947: NO first-edition statement on US-originated firsts; subsequent printings WERE noted on the copyright page, so the ABSENCE of any later-printing notice is the identifying point for a first. This is the only do…
• For books published after 1947, defer to Harcourt, Brace & Co. identification points, since R&H was absorbed by Harcourt in 1948 and later issues of R&H titles carry Harcourt imprints/points.

Full Reynal & Hitchcock 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. 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 true first of the work is the French 'Terre des hommes,' Gallimard, Paris, 1939. The English text is not a straight translation — Saint-Exupéry revised and added material for the American audience — so the Reynal & Hitchcock 'Wind, Sand and Stars' is collected as the first edition of that distinct English text; both the French original and the English edition are collected. The signed limited of 500 is the first English-language printing, preceding the Reynal & Hitchcock trade edition.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

A Book-of-the-Month Club selection (July 1939). The club issue is typically unpriced at the jacket flap and usually carries a small blindstamped device to the lower rear board, whereas the first trade issue has the price present at the flap; use price-at-flap as the primary tell.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Wind, Sand and Stars (Terre des hommes) a first edition?

A first edition of Wind, Sand and Stars (Terre des hommes) by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (Reynal & Hitchcock) is identified by: First American trade edition: Reynal & Hitchcock, New York, 1939, translated by Lewis Galantière; octavo, 306 pp., with pictorial endpapers by John O'Hara Cosgrave II.

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 true first of the work is the French 'Terre des hommes,' Gallimard, Paris, 1939.

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

A Book-of-the-Month Club selection (July 1939). The club issue is typically unpriced at the jacket flap and usually carries a small blindstamped device to the lower rear board, whereas the first trade issue has the price present at the flap; use price-at-flap as the primary tell.

I have a first edition of Wind, Sand and Stars (Terre des hommes) — 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.