6 easy ways to tell when a book is NOT a true first edition

Don’t be fooled ... 6 easy ways to tell when a book is NOT a true first edition

If you’re considering a first edition of a favorite children’s book for someone on your gift list, don’t let yourself be misled. Many casual booksellers mistakenly think a book is a first edition because the copyright date inside the book matches the original year of publication and ask a high price for it. 

Unfortunately that’s not an accurate way to date a book because the copyright date is only that, the date the book was copyrighted, NOT the date that particular copy was printed. For example, the first edition of Little House on the Prairie was published in 1935. Books printed many years after that still have the 1935 date inside, but they are worth nowhere near the price of a first edition.

It can take a lot of research to identify a first edition, but you just want to buy a gift, not become a literary expert! Here are some quick and easy ways you can tell when a book isn’t really a first edition without having to do any research. 

Awards

If the cover mentions awards the book has won or says it’s a bestseller, it is not the first edition of that book. The first edition would have been printed before the book won any awards or became a bestseller.

Printed price

Look for the original price printed on the front or back cover or on the inside flap of the dust jacket. If the price is not consistent with the time period of the original publication date, it’s not a first edition.

ISBN number

ISBNs, or International Standard Book Numbers, originated in 1969. If there’s a ten-digit ISBN on the cover, title page, or copyright page, that book was printed in 1969 or later. If there’s a 13-digit ISBN, it was printed in 2007 or after. So if a 1941 Curious George shows an ISBN, it is not a 1941 Curious George.

UPC barcode

Similarly, UPC barcodes were first used on products in 1974 and weren’t widely used on books until even later. If the book has a copyright date before 1974 and has a UPC barcode, it can’t possibly be the first edition. Beware Little Golden Books with barcodes. Little Golden Books have changed very little over the decades, and many still have the original cover and original copyright date inside. For example, the first edition of The Poky Little Puppy came out in 1942. The copy you’re considering may have that copyright date, the original cover illustration, and faded pages, but if it has a barcode, it is definitely not from 1942.  

Book clubs

A first book club edition of a book is not usually a true first edition. In most cases, book club editions are printed after a book has gained popularity. 

Paperbacks

Most, but not all, older children’s books were printed in a hardcover edition first and then were sold in paperback once they became popular, often by a totally different publisher. So if you see a paperback children’s book marked as a first edition, you’re very likely looking at the first paperback edition, or the first edition by that particular publisher, not the true first edition. For example, there have been many, many published versions of Little Women. And each time it’s published by a new publisher and marked as a first edition, it’s that publisher’s first edition of Little Women, not Louisa May Alcott’s first edition. That would be in a totally different price range.

Books that are not true first editions still make wonderful gifts and keepsakes, but these tips will help you avoid overpaying for them — allowing you to buy more books!