What is a first edition?
A true first edition is the very first edition of the book. In the case of Jill’s Gymkhana, it is an edition published in 1949. The only date that should show on the copyright page is 1949, with no other editions or impressions listed.
What is an impression?
If someone lists a first edition as ‘first edition, fifth impression’ it’s not the very first edition off the press. It’s the fifth lot off the press, using the same text as the first edition. In the illustration below, which is my edition of Jill’s Riding Club, you can see it’s not a true first edition. It gives a first edition printed date, but states this is the third impression, printed in 1960. You might see it listed in a catalogue as first edition, third imp.
You’ll see all sorts of things badged (inaccurately) as first editions. If anyone tries to sell you a Hampton Library edition, that’s not a first edition. These are all listed on my Jill publishing information page, and you can find that here. The dustjackets have quite obvious differences (in most cases) from the first editions.
There is a thing called ‘first edition thus’, which is the first edition of a new edition, like the first Knight Jill’s Gymkhana illustrated by Bonar Dunlop.
Is the dustjacket original?
Unfortunately booksellers do sometimes swap dustjackets. If they have a nice first edition hardback for sale, without a dustjacket, and then find a later edition with a decent dustwrapper, they’ll get much more money for the first edition with a dustjacket, even if it’s not the right one. Is it ethical? Yes, if they point out it’s a marriage between two different editions. No, if you, the buyer, think you’re getting a true first edition dustjacket.
It may be that this doesn’t bother you at all – all you want is a hardback with a dustjacket and you’re not worried they don’t match, in which case fair enough. But if you’re about to spend a lot of money on what you think is a first edition with a first edition dustwrapper, it’s worth checking.
Swapping a tatty first edition dustwrapper for a better first edition one is more questionable. Yes, the buyer ends up with a first edition with a first edition dustwrapper, but it’s not the original. The historian in me jibs at that. It’s not the original artefact.
After a conversation with a Jill collector, I thought it would be a good idea to put up what the actual first edition dustwrappers are supposed to look like. If you’re not sure about the book you’re about to buy, ask the seller for more photographs, or ask what books are listed on the back and what the price is on the dustjacket.
Jill’s Gymkhana
Hodder & Stoughton, 1949
Boards: tan
Original price: 7/6
Titles listed to rear: Jill’s Gymkhana. Inside rear flap: Tschiffely: The Tale of Two Horses
My edition has tan boards: it’s not unknown for an edition to have different coloured boards, which I assume is the publisher using up old board stock.
Here’s what the dustjacket should look like:
A Stable for Jill
Hodder & Stoughton, 1951
Boards: green
Original price: 7/6
Titles listed to rear: A Stable for Jill. Inside rear flap: Jill’s Gymkhana and Tschiffely: The Tale of Two Horses
Jill Has Two Ponies
Hodder & Stoughton, 1952
Boards: green
Original price: 8/6
Titles listed to rear: Jill’s Gymkhana, A Stable for Jill. Inside rear flap: Jill’s Gymkhana, A Stable for Jill
Jill Enjoys Her Ponies
Hodder & Stoughton, 1954
Boards: green
Original price: 8/6
Titles listed to rear: Jill’s Gymkhana, A Stable for Jill, Jill Has Two Ponies. Inside rear flap: Ruby Ferguson’s A Paintbox for Pauline
Jill’s Riding Club
Hodder & Stoughton, 1956
Boards: orange/brown
Original price: 9/6
Titles listed to rear: Jill’s Gymkhana, A Stable for Jill, Jill Has Two Ponies. Inside rear flap: unknown
Rosettes for Jill
Hodder & Stoughton, 1957
Boards: tan
Original price: 9/6
Titles listed to rear: Jill’s Gymkhana, A Stable for Jill, Jill Has Two Ponies, Jill Enjoys Her Ponies. Inside rear flap: Jill’s Riding Club
Jill and the Perfect Pony
Hodder & Stoughton, 1959
Boards: green
Original price: 9/6
Titles listed to rear: Jill Enjoys Her Ponies, Jill’s Riding Club, Rosettes for Jill. Inside rear flap: Jill’s Gymkhana, A Stable for Jill, Jill Has Two Ponies
Pony Jobs for Jill
Hodder & Stoughton, 1960
Boards: beige
Original price: 9/6
Titles listed to rear: Jill Enjoys Her Ponies, Jill’s Riding Club, Rosettes for Jill, Jill and the Perfect Pony. Inside rear flap: Jill’s Gymkhana, A Stable for Jill, Jill Has Two Ponies
Jill’s Pony Trek
Hodder & Stoughton, 1962
Boards: green (variant: buff)
Original price: unknown
Titles listed to rear: Jill’s Gymkhana, A Stable for Jill, Jill Has Two Ponies, Jill Enjoys Her Ponies, Jill’s Riding Club, Rosettes for Jill, Jill and the Perfect Pony. Inside rear flap: Pony Jobs for Jill
Further reading
Peter Harrington, antiquarian bookseller, on first editions
The Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America on first editions
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