In the rare book world, is there a difference between a first edition and a first printing? The phrase “first American edition,” for instance, indicates that the book was first published in another country and this is its first appearance in America. There are thousands of publishers and they use a large variety of methods, which are often changed, to define first editions. Used either a first-edition statement or a colophon on the copyright page of first editions. Also, why the difference is price between these two listings for the same title? What Does Bruce Springsteen's 'Born In The U.S.A.' Really Mean? States either "First published (Year)," "First printing (Year)," or "First edition (Year)" on the copyright page of first editions. While there were a few books first printed by other companies, most were from Harper's. Identifying the First Edition of a Book. [by whom? A Pocket Guide to the Identification of First Editions details the methods over 4,600 different publishers use to identify their first editions. These novels are generally written by Americans and deal in some way with the question of America's national character. That edition was released in March, 2008. Like many things in publishing, what denotes a first edition can be complex and dependent on the whims of individual publishing houses. Each of the first nine digits of the 10-digit ISBN—excluding the check digit itself—is multiplied by its (integer) weight, descending from 10 to 2, and the sum of these nine products found. Farrar, Straus & Young. He released his self-edited first edition in June, 2006. According to the definition of edition above, a book printed today, by the same publisher, and from the same type as when it was first published, is still the first edition of that book to a bibliographer.However, book collectors generally use the term first edition to mean specifically the first print run of the first edition (aka "first edition, first impression"). Sometimes the statement “first edition” needs to be qualified. American definition is - an American Indian of North America or South America. The perception of the “First Strike” designation is that somehow these coins were struck first, or at least early, in production. Collectors use the term “first edition” as a short form of “first printing of the first edition” and that is how we will be using this term. Most first editions Zane Grey books were published by Harper's. How to use American in a sentence. Condition is very important to the value of a book. The publisher may actually state the words ‘first edition’ … The term Great American Novel (GAN) refers to a canonical novel that is thought to have captured the spirit of American life. What does Condition of Books mean? A year later, Dave signed a deal with Inkwater Press to publish a professionally edited second edition.