Rare Book Monthly

Articles - April - 2006 Issue

A Review of Bill McBride's E-First Edition Guide

Useful software for identifying first editions from publisher Bill McBride.

Useful software for identifying first editions from publisher Bill McBride.


by Renée Magriel Roberts

Having reviewed Bill McBride's latest edition of A Pocket Guide to the Identification of First Editions in book form in AE Monthly, I was pleased to see a new version (taken from the Sixth Revised Edition) of the Guide in software format. Since I am glued to my computer whenever I'm doing data entry, it seemed useful to have the Guide in its own window, ready to answer questions about whether or not a particular book is indeed a first edition.

Like its paper cousin, the E-First Edition Guide is organized around an alphabetical listing of publishers. As software, this publisher list is searchable by typing all or part of its name. The E-Guide uses the same abbreviation scheme as the printed book, which does take getting used to; however, by mousing over the definition, the full explanation is revealed. Since each publisher not only comes up with its own scheme for defining its first editions (and sometimes no scheme at all), and is not consistent within its own publishing history, a guide such as this is invaluable for figuring out when a book is actually a first.

The search function will also pick out a string of letters within a name. Searching for "Wood," for example, will display a list of publishers starting with that word, such as Wood & Holbrook, but then will also find the same string within a word, such as "Arrowood Press". It's important to note that this publisher list (in both the book and the E-Guide) is not comprehensive. So if you are in doubt you may have to do further research by looking at cues within the book itself, such as the typography of the number or letter line of printings, dated introductions and prefaces correlated with publication dates, advertisements of other works which can place the book after others are published, peculiarities of the dustjacket (understanding that a jacket and book may be "married" from different sources), reliable bibliographies, and of course the collected wisdom of fellow dealers on other antiquarian sites.

First issue points, the subject of McBride's other work (still in print form), can also pinpoint a first edition in major nineteenth- and twentieth-century authors. To McBride's credit, he actively solicits corrections and additions to the work, which is why it is now in its sixth edition, both in print form and in the E-Guide. We would all benefit from active collaboration in this work, so as you explore some of the smaller publishers who have not made it into the E-Guide I encourage you to contact McBride with information to update his work. An online suggestion form on McBride's site would benefit everybody -- such as the one Amazon is now using to create Marketplace listings, as well as to amend them.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Sotheby’sBooks, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to ModernNow through July 10, 2025 Sotheby’sBooks, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to ModernNow through July 10, 2025
    Sotheby’s
    Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern
    Now through July 10, 2025
    Sotheby’s
    Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern
    Now through July 10, 2025
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: Book of Hours by the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht, Use of Sarum, in Latin, Southern Netherlands (Bruges), c.1450. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: Albert Einstein. Autograph letter signed, to Attilio Palatino, on his research into General Relativity, 12 May 1929. £12,000 to £18,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: John Gould. The Birds of Europe, [1832-] 1837, 5 volumes, contemporary half morocco, subscriber’s copy. £40,000 to £60,000.
    Sotheby’s
    Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern
    Now through July 10, 2025
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: Ian Fleming. A collection of James Bond first editions, 8 volumes in all. £8,000 to £12,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, 1997, first edition, hardback issue. £50,000 to £70,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: J.R.R. Tolkien. Autograph letter signed, to Amy Ronald, on Pauline Baynes's map of Middle Earth, 1970. £7,000 to £10,000.
  • Rare Book Hub is now mobile-friendly! Rare Book Hub is now mobile-friendly!
    Rare Book Hub is now mobile-friendly!
    Rare Book Hub is now mobile-friendly!
  • DOYLERare Books, Autographs & MapsJuly 23, 2025 DOYLERare Books, Autographs & MapsJuly 23, 2025
    DOYLE
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    July 23, 2025
    DOYLE
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    July 23, 2025
    DOYLE, July 23: WALL, BERNHARDT. Greenwich Village. Types, Tenements & Temples. Estimate $300-500
    DOYLE, July 23: STOKES, I. N. PHELPS. The Iconography of Manhattan Island, 1498-1909. New York: Robert H. Dodd, 1915-28. Estimate: $3,000-5,000
    DOYLE, July 23: [AUTOGRAPH - US PRESIDENT]FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT. A signed photograph of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Estimate $500-800
    DOYLE, July 23: [ARION PRESS]. ABBOTT, EDWIN A. Flatland. A Romance of Many Dimensions. San Francisco, 1980. Estimate $2,000-3,000.
    DOYLE, July 23: TOLSTOY, LYOF N. and NATHAN HASKELL DOLE, translator. Anna Karénina ... in eight parts. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell & Co., [1886]. Estimate: $400-600
    DOYLE, July 23: ROWLING, J.K. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. London: Bloomsbury, 2000. Estimate $1,200-1,800
  • Freeman’s | HindmanWestern Manuscripts and MiniaturesJuly 8, 2025 Freeman’s | HindmanWestern Manuscripts and MiniaturesJuly 8, 2025
    Freeman’s | Hindman
    Western Manuscripts and Miniatures
    July 8, 2025
    Freeman’s | Hindman
    Western Manuscripts and Miniatures
    July 8, 2025
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. FRANCESCO PETRARCH (b. Arezzo, 20 July 1304; d. Arqua Petrarca, 19 July 1374). $20,000-30,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. CIRCLE OF THE MASTER OF THE VITAE IMPERATORUM (active Milan, 1431-1459). $15,000-20,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. CIRCLE OF ATTAVANTE DEGLI ATTAVANTI (GABRIELLO DI VANTE) (active Florence, c. 1452-c. 1520/25). $15,000-20,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. FOLLOWER OF HERMAN SCHEERE (active London, c. 1405-1425). $15,000-20,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. An exceptionally rare, illuminated music leaf from a Mozarabic Antiphonal with sister leaves mostly in museum collections. $11,500-14,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. Exceptional leaf from a prestigious Antiphonary by a leading illuminator of the late Duecento. $11,500-14,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. CIRCLE OF THE MASTER OF MS REID 33 and SELWERD ABBEY SCRIPTORIUM (AGNES MARTINI?) (active The Netherlands, Groningen, c. 1468-1510). $10,000-15,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. Previously unknown illumination from one of the most renowned Gothic Choir Book sets of the Middle Ages. $6,000-8,000.

Article Search

Archived Articles