The Grapes of Wrath

First printings have a single statement on the copyright page that says "FIRST PUBLISHED IN APRIL 1939" with no statement of subsequent printings.

The first printing was large - estimated between 20,000 and 50,000. But demand is high on this highly collectible book. Also the Dust Jacket is unique to the first edition (it states "FIRST EDITION"), so it is less abundant than the book.

The Grapes of Wrath won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. This book is also one of Time Magazine's 100 Best Novels. Other Time 100 Novels include Gone with the Wind and The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

To find the market value for this book, click on the pre-filled eBay, AbeBooks, or Biblio links to the right and look for comparable listings that have all of these first edition points.

Picture of the 1939 first edition dust jacket for The Grapes of Wrath.

First printings have a single statement on the copyright page that says "FIRST PUBLISHED IN APRIL 1939". It must have no other statements below it.

The front flap of the first issue dust jacket states "FIRST EDITION" in the bottom corner. Even if this is clipped, you can still identify it by the lack of review blurbs.

Picture of the back dust jacket for the first edition of The Grapes of Wrath.

Picture of the first edition Viking boards for The Grapes of Wrath.

Picture of the back dust jacket flap for the first edition of The Grapes of Wrath.

Picture of the first edition title page for The Grapes of Wrath.

This is from an eleventh printing. We included it here for an illustration of when various printings were made. Notice that there is a "second printing before publication" and "third printing before publication". It just means that the publishers decided to print more books before the actual date of publication. There is nothing particularly special about these printings - the most desirable one is still the first printing.

This is the front flap of an 11th printing dust jacket. It has reviews on the front flap, and states that that this jacket is somewhere north of over 430,000 impressions. Beware of first printing books that are married later dust jackets such as this one. If this is disclosed and priced according, we see nothing wrong with the practice. We would rather see a book in some kind of jacket that none at all.

Other first edition points for books by John Steinbeck include: Of Mice And Men, The Pearl, Sweet Thursday, East of Eden, The Wayward Bus, Cannery Row, The Moon is Down, The Winter of Our Discontent, The Short Reign of Pippin IV.

         

Disclaimer: This website is intended to help guide you and give you insight into what to look for when identifying first editions. The information is compiled from the experience of reputable collectors and dealers in the industry. Gathering and updating information about these books is more an art than a science, and new points of issue are sometimes discovered that may contradict currently accepted identification points. This means that the information presented here may not always be 100% accurate. If you spot a mistake, drop us an e-mail and we will do our best to investigate and correct it.

See also...

See also...