How to identify a first printing
- Check the copyright page for the stated printing line. Warner's most common and most reliable tell — especially on its mass-market paperbacks — is a dated statement reading "First Printing: [Month] [Year]" (e.g. "First Printing: September 1991"); on trade hardcovers it more often reads "First Edition" or "First Printing." A printing statement that names any month/year later than the first, or that reads "Second Printing" etc., is a reprint.
- Confirm with the number line (printer's key) on the copyright page. Warner used the standard American rule: the LOWEST digit present indicates the printing. A complete line containing a 1 (e.g. "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1" or "1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2") is a first printing; if the 1 has been stripped so the lowest number is 2 or higher, it is a later printing.
- Treat the number line as decisive when it and the printing statement disagree: even a copy that still says "First Printing" or "First Edition" is actually a later printing if the 1 is gone from the line — publishers routinely reset only the digits, not the words.
- Apply the same two-part test (dated printing statement + number line ending in 1) to Warner mass-market and trade paperback originals, since Warner published heavily in paperback. A later-numbered line, or a printing statement naming a later month/year, marks a reprint even when the cover art is unchanged.
- Use the imprint wording itself to bracket the era: books read "Warner Books" and carry a corporate line such as "A Warner Communications Company" (earlier) or "A Time Warner Company" (later); this imprint runs roughly 1970 through 2006–2007, after which the same house issued books as "Grand Central Publishing."
- For a Warner hardcover, the true first is normally the Warner-imprinted trade hardcover with the stated first-printing/first-edition line and a 1 in the number line, in a first-state dust jacket carrying that title's original price and no later-printing or book-club notices.
Notable points & cautions
- Warner began as a reprint/paperback house (built on the former Paperback Library), so a great many Warner books are reprints of another publisher's first edition. A Warner first-printing line marks the first WARNER printing, not necessarily the first appearance of the text — confirm the title was a Warner original before treating it as the true first edition.
- Watch the wording: Warner more often states "First Printing [Month Year]" than "First Edition," particularly on mass-market paperbacks. Do not assume a Warner first must literally say "First Edition" — the dated printing line plus a number line ending in 1 is the real test.
- Do not rely on the printing statement alone; Warner (like other houses) sometimes left the statement set while resetting the number line, so the surviving lowest digit in the line governs the printing.
- Book-club editions of Warner titles exist and can lack a number line and price while sometimes retaining edition-like wording; a blind-stamp/dot on the rear board, absence of a price, and a missing number line flag a club copy.
- The rename year is commonly stated loosely as 2006, but that is the year Hachette bought the Time Warner Book Group; trade press and the successor imprint date the actual Warner Books → Grand Central Publishing rename to 2007. Sub-lines (Warner Vision, Warner Aspect, Warner Faith, and the Warner-distributed Mysterious Press) are the main variant imprint strings collectors will encounter for the same house.
Imprints
First editions also appear under: Warner Books, Inc., A Warner Communications Company (early copyright-page line), A Time Warner Company (later copyright-page line), Warner Vision, Warner Aspect (SF/fantasy line), Warner Faith, Mysterious Press (crime imprint distributed via Warner), Grand Central Publishing (successor imprint, 2007–). Each generally follows the house convention above.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if my Warner Books book is a first edition?
Check the copyright page. Check the copyright page for the stated printing line. Warner's most common and most reliable tell — especially on its mass-market paperbacks — is a dated statement reading "First Printing: [Month] [Year]" (e.g. "First Printing: September 1991"); on trade hardcovers it more often reads "First Edition" or "First Printing." A printing statement that names any month/year later than the first, or that reads "Second Printing" etc., is a reprint. Confirm with the number line (printer's key) on the copyright page. Warner used the standard American rule: the LOWEST digit present indicates the printing. A complete line containing a 1 (e.g. "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1" or "1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2") is a first printing; if the 1 has been stripped so the lowest number is 2 or higher, it is a later printing.
Does Warner Books use a number line?
Confirm with the number line (printer's key) on the copyright page. Warner used the standard American rule: the LOWEST digit present indicates the printing. A complete line containing a 1 (e.g. "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1" or "1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2") is a first printing; if the 1 has been stripped so the lowest number is 2 or higher, it is a later printing.
Is a book-club edition a Warner Books first edition?
No. Book-club editions reprint the text but are not the true first edition. Warner began as a reprint/paperback house (built on the former Paperback Library), so a great many Warner books are reprints of another publisher's first edition. A Warner first-printing line marks the first WARNER printing, not necessarily the first appearance of the text — confirm the title was a Warner original before treating it as the true first edition.
What era does this cover?
This covers Warner Books (founded 1970; Warner Books imprint retired 2007 (Hachette bought Time Warner Book Group in 2006, renamed the imprint Grand Central Publishing in 2007)). Conventions changed over time, so confirm the era of your copy.