Agatha Christie Paperback Firsts - 1940s.

This is part two in this series. To read part one, the 1930s paperback firsts click here.

Collecting Agatha Christie paperback first editions is a more affordable and attainable endeavour than seeking to collect all her first hardback editions in dust wrappers. That said, paperback collectors will still have expensive and rare books to find should a complete collection be sought.

In creating this collectors guide, I had to consider a variety of variables which led me to establish the structure and ground rules for how the list is compiled. For complete details on these please go to Part One – the 1930s First Edition Paperbacks (linked above).

During the 1940s, 22 Agatha Christie books (novels and short story collections) were published as paperbacks for the first time. So from the first paperback in 1932 through to 1949, a total of 48 Agatha Christie novels and short-story collections had now been published as paperbacks.

1940.

1/1940: The Mystery of the Blue Train, Pocket Books, New York, USA. Series No. 38.

First British paperback: 1948: Penguin Books, London, UK. Series No. 691.

Collectors note: The original No. 38 (above left) with its overhead train image is surprisingly hard to find so some patience may be needed to fine a collector quality copy. Pocket Books also had a Canadian division that appears to have published the books simultaneously with the American printings. Since Pocket Books was an American company, I am giving precedence to the American version as the true first. The cover was changed frequently by Pocket Books, including in 1948 (middle), 1956 and 1962, just to mention a few that are more commonly found.

1941.

xx/1941: Dead Man’s Mirror, Bestseller Mystery, New York, USA. Series No. B18. Not abridged. This paperback contains four short stories, the titular story, The Worlds End, The Bird with the Broken Wing, and The Man from the Sea. None was abridged. This is the first global paperback (thus) with this title and these stories published together.

However, the four stories contained in it did previously appear across two paperbacks. Dead Man’s Mirror first appeared in Murder in the Mews, The Albatross Crime Club (Europe, 1938). The other three stories were originally included in The Mysterious Mr. Quin, Collins (UK, 1934). There is no British equivalent to this paperback.

1942.

No first paperbacks.

1943.

xx/1943: The Regatta Mystery, Bestseller Mystery, New York, USA. Series No. B36. This paperback contains nine short stories, all are complete and none is abridged. They are The Regatta Mystery, The Mystery of the Baghdad Chest, How Does your Garden Grow?, Problem at Pollensa Bay, Yellow Iris, Miss Marple Tells a Story, The Dream, In a Glass Darkly, and Problem at Sea.  This is the first global paperback of both the titular story and the other stories within.

Collecting Notes: Todd Publishing (UK) did publish The Mystery of the Baghdad Chest, The Problem at Pollensa Bay and Problem at Sea in various small format paperbacks in 1943, though whether these preceded B36 is unknown. There is no British equivalent.

xx/1943: Poirot Investigates, Bestseller Mystery, New York, USA. Series No. B43. This paperback contains 12 short stories. None is abridged.

First British paperback: 1955: Pan Books, London, UK. Series No. 326.

Collecting Notes: The UK hardback contained 11 short stories, while the US hardback contained 14 (adding The Chocolate Box, The Veiled Lady and The Lost Mine). This paperback excludes 2 of the short stories found in both the UK and US hardbacks – The Kidnapped Prime Minister and The Case of the Missing Will - but retains the extra US hardback stories.

xx/1943: The Secret of Chimneys, Mercury Mystery, New York, USA. Series No. 69. It has some minor abridgement.

First unabridged paperback: 1947: Dell Books, New York, USA. Series No. 199 (map-back).

First British paperback: 1956: Pan Books, London, UK. Series No. 366.

xx/1943: Murder for Christmas (UK: Hercule Poirot’s Christmas), Jonathan Press, New York, USA. Series No. J7.

First British paperback: 1/1945, Collins White Circle, London, UK. Series No. 149c.

Collecting Notes:There is also a Collins White Circle Services Edition of this book, Series No. c352. However, it appears this was published later than the regular Collins White Circle edition.

c.09/1943: Sad Cypress, Scherz Phoenix Books, Berne, Switzerland. Series No. 13.

First British paperback: xx/1943: Collins White Circle Services Edition, London, UK. Series No. c202.

First British paperback for retail sale: 10/1959: Fontana Books, London, UK. Series No. 342.

Collecting Notes: The first state of this Services edition did not reference the Series Number. This book was produced for the Armed Forces during WW II. The sequence of whether Scherz or Collins published first is unclear. Since the Phoenix edition was the first paperback for retail sale, and given that we know they published their edition of Five Little Pigs prior to the Services edition (1944 vs. 1945) I'm placing it in the top spot of first paperback.

11/1943: The Patriotic Murders (UK: One, Two, Buckle My Shoe), Pocket Books, New York, USA. Series No. 249.

First British paperback: 03/1950, Collins White Circle, London, UK. Series No. 186c.

Collecting Notes: Pocket Books often had confusing print dates. It was common for them to reference two dates – a first printing date and a Pocket Books edition date that were different. For this book it states the first printing is November 1943 but also says that the first Pocket Books printing was February 1944.  There is no other earlier paperback known without the February 1944 reference.  Also of interest, many copies of this American printing will state on the rear cover that they can be posted to a member of the Armed Services for only 3 cents. This period of time may help explain the title change for the American market. With regard to the Collins White Circle book, this was published when pricing was shifting from 1/- to 1/6. I assume the 1/- priced version is the first state, while the 1/6 (shown here) is the second state.

xx/1943: The Moving Finger, Collins White Circle Services Edition, London, UK. Series No. c219.

First British paperback for retail sale: 1953: Penguin Books, London, UK. Series No. 930.

c.11/1943: The Body in the Library, Scherz Phoenix, Berne, Switzerland. Series No. 19.

First British paperback: xx/1943: Collins White Circle Services Edition, London, UK. Series No. c221.

First British paperback for retail sale: 1953: Penguin Books, London, UK. Series No. 924.

Collecting Notes: As with prior instances, I'm giving preference to the Scherz paperback over the Services Edition until the actual months of printing for the Services editions are known. For Penguin collectors, this first printing does say ‘Mystery and Crime’ twice in the white band on the cover. The 1954 and later versions do not.

xx/1943: N or M?, There are two known ‘Services Editions’. The printing sequence is unknown. (1) Collins White Circle Pocket Novel, Bombay (Mumbai), India. This version was printed specially for the Army and Royal Air Force in India and SEAC. The cover design is significantly different than the UK design for this title and states ‘Not for sale’. (2) Collins White Circle Services Edition, London, UK. Series No. c244. 

First British paperback for retail sale: 1959: Pan Books, London, UK. Series No. G259.

 Collecting Notes: The Indian Services edition is even scarcer than the British Services edition. Collectors should acquire any copy they can find.

1944.

c.01/1944: Murder is Easy, Collins White Circle, London, UK. Series No. 145c.

03/1944: And Then There Were None, Pocket Books, New York, USA. Series No. 261. Note this book was dated March but likely published in May.

First British Edition: 1947, Pan Series No. 4 (originally published as Ten Little N-s).

c.04/1944: Five Little Pigs, Scherz Phoenix, Berne, Switzerland. Series No. 22.

First British paperback: 1945: Collins White Circle Services Edition, London, UK. Series No. c305.

First British paperback for retail sale: 1953: Pan Books, London, UK. Series No. 264.

xx/1944: The Secret Adversary, Bestseller Mystery, New York, USA. Series No. B48. This novel is abridged.

First Unabridged paperback: 1946: Avon Books, New York, USA. Series No. 100.

First British paperback: 10/1955: Pan Books, London, UK. Series No. 357.

xx/1944: The Man in the Brown Suit, Bestseller Mystery, New York, USA. Series No. B52. This novel is abridged.

First Unabridged paperback: 1949: Dell Books, New York, USA. Series No. 319.

First British paperback: 1953: Pan Books, London, UK. Series No. 250.

1945.

1/1945: Evil Under the Sun, Pocket Books, New York, USA. Series No. 285.

First British paperback: 05/1950: Collins White Circle, London, UK. Series No. 189c.

Collecting Notes: A paperback of this title was printed by David Vast for the Times of Ceylon, Ltd., Colombo and published by W.A.R. Collins circa 1945 (image above right). However, the paperback is unnumbered and undated. If it was published earlier than January 1945, it would be the first global paperback. Any insights from readers are welcome. For the American Pocket Book printing, as with others from this period a sticker on the rear cover states that for 4 cents it can be sent to Service Members.

xx/1945: Towards Zero, Collins White Circle Services Edition, London, UK. Series No. c275 (note: some sources state this may be from 1944).

First paperback for retail sale: 1947: Pocket Books, New York, USA. Series No. 398.

First British paperback for retail sale: 1948: Pan Books, London, UK. Series No. 54.

1946.

No first paperbacks.

1947.

9/1947: Remembered Death (UK: Sparkling Cyanide), Pocket Books, New York, USA. Series No. 451.

First British paperback: 8/1949: Collins White Circle, London, UK. Series No. 179c.

Collecting Notes: This is one instance where the American title was Christie's original title, and the British title was changed at the publisher's request purportedly due to concerns about the emotional impact at the end of the war for a title such as Remembered Death.

11/1947: Death Comes as the End, Pocket Books, New York, USA. Series No. 465.

First British paperback: 1/1950: Collins White Circle, London, UK. Series No. 182c.

1948.

xx/1948: The Hollow, Collins White Circle, Toronto, Canada. Series No. CD 365.

First British paperback: 1950: Pan Books, London, UK. Series No. 119.

Collecting Notes: While the Canadian Collins books of this era were also called 'White Circle' editions, the actual white circle was very small (see the top left corner) compared to the British editions. While I generally like graphic covers they do need to be authentic to the book. This Canadian edition with its giant beach ball / umbrella / humbug, with Gerda in a bikini is all rather odd.

1949.

xx/1949: There is a Tide (UK: Taken at the Flood), Collins White Circle, Toronto, Canada. Series No. CD 426.

First British paperback: 5/1952: Collins White Circle, London, UK. Series No. 206c.

VALUES:

In Britain, books published during the war are generally scarcer and more costly. The values for these war time copies are often significantly higher than both pre- or post-war printings.

Canadian Collins White Circle paperbacks: These books can still be purchased for approximately £20 ($30 CDN) in very good condition making them appealing and good candidates for appreciation. However, finding them for sale is another matter as they are surprisingly scarce and estimated to number only in the 100s for remaining copies.

The Collins White Circle Services Edition books are exceptionally scarce. Those mentioned above will often sell for £150 - £300 ($200 - $400). Note: none have a jacket.

The Collins White Circle books are more affordable. However, those printed during the war will often sell for £100 - £150 ($135 - $200). Post-war printings will often be closer to £20 - £30 for very good copies. Note: none have a jacket.

The early Pan first British editions discussed above are generally worth £20 - £30 in ‘very good’ condition, and about double this for No. 4. Collectors will still need to be patient. The correct first states of these printings do not often appear for sale.

The American printings discussed above are all valued at £35 ($50) or less even in very good condition and so still offer good value for money.

As with all book purchases, since there are many reprints of these titles be cautious if the listing is not complete. Always ask for images of the copyright page, as well as the rear covers to be certain what you are buying.

Comments.

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Happy Collecting!