identifying first editions?
is it always as easy as the full number line? cuz, i see a lot of full number lines in thrift stores, of books i would kill to have first editions of. i know *first printings* often say first edition or printing, but after that, does it get trickier?
www.triplebeard.com
http://darkroomreview.blogspot.com
“...There are so many ways of being despicable it quite makes one's head spin. But the way to be really despicable is to be contemptuous of other people's pain. You ought to have some apprehension that the man you see before you was once even younger than you are now and arrived at his present wretchedness by imperceptible degrees.”
-James Baldwin
so, like.. ummm.... with stephen king books it tends to go... 1357 etc. thats still considered first edition?
www.triplebeard.com
http://darkroomreview.blogspot.com
“...There are so many ways of being despicable it quite makes one's head spin. But the way to be really despicable is to be contemptuous of other people's pain. You ought to have some apprehension that the man you see before you was once even younger than you are now and arrived at his present wretchedness by imperceptible degrees.”
-James Baldwin
if it's hardcover, and it starts with 1, it probably is, i'd think so anyway.
so, you mean: 1 3 5 7 9 2 4 6 8 10 ?
sometimes if it starts with another number (other than 1) but 1 still is in the sequence, it could be a first edition, but not a first printing.
i think. i'm not a pro at this though, chuck. so don't take my word as gospel.
http://www.millersmiles.co.uk/bookguide/firsteditionbooks/firsteditionbo...
that's a pretty good link. i just googled "identifying first edition books" anda millio things come up. this is the first one i clicked on.
i have:
seth morgan - homeboy (signed)
firsts from everyone on the velvet (signed)
fight club (not signed) think it might be rarer that way
james baldwin - if beale street could talk (first printing)
hunter thompson - fear and loathing on the campaign trail
shit loads more. im a collector, those are just the neater ones
www.triplebeard.com
http://darkroomreview.blogspot.com
“...There are so many ways of being despicable it quite makes one's head spin. But the way to be really despicable is to be contemptuous of other people's pain. You ought to have some apprehension that the man you see before you was once even younger than you are now and arrived at his present wretchedness by imperceptible degrees.”
-James Baldwin
very nice.
all of the velvet's - too good.
I don't know what on earth you guys are talking about with the number line stuff.
I have a copy of Lowell's Poems that is so old it is crumbling apart, I am nearly afaid to open it because the pages are so delicate. Last time I was looking it over just from gently leafing through the pages one fell out. Unfortunaltly the only page completely missing is the copyright page, so I haven't been able to find out by my own volition if it is first edition or not.
You should have it fixed.
This is why we can't have nice things.
How do you go about having an old, and possibly rare, copy of a book fixed?
http://www.emptymirrorbooks.com/collecting/firstedition.html
Have it signed. 
the shite thing about first editions is that it's often dpendent on the publisher. all publishers signify it differently. mostly though, if the number line has the number 1 in it, it's going to be first edition.
but yeah, if it's a (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10) full number line like that, it's probably a first edition and first print.
nice.
you should've chucked this in the Book Club section, then w could've bragged about what first editions we all have.
and here i go: i have Hempel's Reasons and At The Gates both hardcover first edition/first printing. they're probablly the two that i'm most proud of.