Is My Wonder a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The first printing is identified on the copyright page, which reads "February 2012" followed by the number line "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1" and then "FIRST EDITION"; the same page carries the Library of Congress control number 2011027133 and the Borzoi/Knopf imprint line
• The number line is decisive, not the words: the "FIRST EDITION" statement and the February 2012 date persist on later printings, which is why dealers routinely list copies as "the printed pricet ed., later printing" (one lists a 42nd printing) — the lowest number surviving in the line gives the printing, so a second printing's line begins at 2
• Collation per LC: 315 pages, 22 cm
• Trade hardcover is ISBN 978-0-375-86902-0; the simultaneous Knopf library binding is ISBN 978-0-375-96902-7 and is a separate issue, not the trade first
• Binding is quarter black cloth over blue boards with a blind-stamped "choose kind" device to the front and gilt/lime spine lettering; jacket art is by Tad Carpenter (copyright 2012), and the earliest jacket state is priced at the flap and carries no award or movie-tie-in banner

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. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
4. Verify this is the US 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?

US: Alfred A. Knopf, New York, published 14 February 2012 — the true first. UK: The Bodley Head, London, 2012 (ISBN 978-0-370-33228-4), issued about 1 March 2012, roughly two weeks later; it is collected in Britain as the first UK edition but does not contest precedence. Written in English; no original-language question.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The dominant reprint trap is the 2017 film tie-in edition (a different ISBN, 1-524-72019-4) and tie-in jackets on the Knopf hardcover — a jacket bearing movie imagery or award/blurb banners is later than the first state. Scholastic book-fair and book-club printings of the paperback circulate widely and are not the Knopf hardcover. Because the "FIRST EDITION" statement is retained across printings, a copy sold as "first edition" with no number line quoted should be assumed to be a later printing until the line is seen.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Wonder a first edition?

A first edition of Wonder by R. J. Palacio (Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children's Books) is identified by: Census claim confirmed.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). US: Alfred A.

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

The dominant reprint trap is the 2017 film tie-in edition (a different ISBN, 1-524-72019-4) and tie-in jackets on the Knopf hardcover — a jacket bearing movie imagery or award/blurb banners is later than the first state. Scholastic book-fair and book-club printings of the paperback circulate widely and are not the Knopf hardcover. Because the "FIRST EDITION" statement is retained across printings, a copy sold as "first edition" with no number line quoted should be assumed to be a later printing

I have a first edition of Wonder — 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.