3 Robert B. Parker first editions are documented on this shelf, from God Save the Child (1974) to Promised Land (1976) across 2 different publishers. Each linked guide gives the points of issue that separate a true first printing of that Robert B. Parker title from later printings and book-club copies — the publisher and year to expect, the number-line or edition-statement conventions, and the tells that show up in online listings.
Identification only, per the house rule: no prices and no appraisals here. Checking a Robert B. Parker copy in hand? Type the title into the First-Edition Checker or photograph the copyright page with Snap & Sort.
- God Save the Child — 1974 · Houghton MifflinUS Houghton Mifflin first, 1974: the second Spenser novel; black cloth lettered in silver with a blue-and-red dust jacket; first printing has no later-printing statement on the copyright page. Parker later won the Edgar for the third Spenser novel, Promised Land (1977). US Houghton Mifflin 1974 is the true first. Book-club editions are smaller and lack the jacket price.
- The Godwulf Manuscript — 1974 · Houghton MifflinThe first printing states "First Printing" on the copyright page, accompanied by Houghton Mifflin's letter code (reported in dealer descriptions as "c"). The first-issue dust jacket carries the date code "0174" at the lower corner of the inside front flap along with the price (priced, unclipped jacket called for). Binding is brown cloth with the title in gilt on the spine and a red topstain; octavo, 186 pp.…. Houghton Mifflin (Boston) 1974 is the true first; the first UK edition followed from Andre Deutsch (London), also 1974. Both are collected; the Houghton Mifflin edition has precedence. Copies lacking the stated "First Printing" on the copyright page, or jackets without the flap price and the "0174" date code, are later printings or later-issue jackets; no distinct book-club points beyond these were documented in the sources consulted.
- Promised Land — 1976 · Houghton MifflinFirst printing has a complete number line 1 through 10 on the copyright page. First-issue dust jacket carries the printed price on the front flap and was designed by Paul Bacon. Fourth Spenser novel; winner of the Edgar Award for Best Novel (1977). The US Houghton Mifflin edition (1976) is the true first. Book-club editions are common: blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board, no price on the jacket, and a gutter code present; the boards bulk thinner than the trade first.
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