FirstFinderYour collection, cataloguedOpen the appFirst edition identification guides
How to tell whether a copy is a true first edition — the edition statement, the binding, the jacket, and the issue points that separate a first printing from everything that followed. Each guide is compiled from published references and checked by hand before it goes up.
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Stephen King
It
Stephen King · Viking, 1986
A first edition of It says "First published in 1986 by Viking Penguin Inc." on the copyright page, has grey endpapers, and carries a $22.95 jacket. Viking, 1986. Unlike King's Doubleday titles there is no gutter code to check — the copyright page and the jacket price are the marks.
Pet Sematary
Stephen King · Doubleday, 1983
A first edition of Pet Sematary says "First Edition" on the copyright page and carries the code Y38 in the gutter of page 374 — the last page. Doubleday, 1983, first printing of 250,000 copies, jacket priced $15.95. Check both: the code is what separates this printing from the ones that followed.
Rage
Stephen King · Signet (New American Library), 1977
A first edition of Rage is a Signet paperback, not a hardcover — it never had a US hardcover printing. The copyright page reads "First Printing, September, 1977" and the number line runs 123456789. Issue price $1.50. It is King's first novel as Richard Bachman, and it is out of print by his own decision.
The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower
Stephen King · Donald M. Grant, Publisher, 2004
The Donald M. Grant first edition came in two issues. The signed one is 1,500 slipcased copies in two volumes, numbered and signed by King and Michael Whelan, issued at $225. The Artist Edition is 5,000 copies signed by Whelan alone, issued at $50 — and a few hundred of those carry a small drawing he added while signing.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger
Stephen King · Donald M. Grant, Publisher, 1982
The first edition is the 1982 Donald M. Grant, illustrated by Michael Whelan — not a Viking or Signet copy. It was issued as 52 lettered copies, 500 signed and numbered copies in slipcases, and a 10,000-copy trade hardcover. If yours is the trade issue, the first printing has maroon boards, coloured endpapers, and two prices on the jacket; the second printing has black boards, plain endpapers, and one price.
The Stand
Stephen King · Doubleday, 1978
A first edition of The Stand says "First Edition" on the copyright page and carries the code T39 in the inner margin of page 823 — the last page. Doubleday, 1978, jacket priced $12.95, from a first printing of 70,000. The 1990 "Complete and Uncut" edition is a different book, not a later printing of this one.
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