COLLECT: Agatha Christie First Editions: 1920-1932

The most traditional way individuals collect Agatha Christie books is by acquiring first edition hardback books. While many of Christie’s books appeared in magazines or newspapers prior to being published in book form, the hard back book is still the default version of choice. In the early decades true firsts are very expensive to collect in dust wrappers (if you can even find them), but books lacking jackets can be found and many are more affordable than you may think. However, collecting the true first editions is not as simple as buying the UK versions. A significant number of Christie’s works were first published outside the UK. Unfortunately, not all printed books cited the month of publication.

Review copies & Newspaper Reviews:

The definitive insight to original publishing dates are review slips or letters that publishers provided to reviewers which would advise of the specific publishing date. This would help reviewers determine when to publish their review. As more of these are found or shared, gaps can be filled in.

The previously unknown publication date of The Mystery of the Blue Train in the USA. Now known!

Beyond specifics from publisher correspondence and estate archives, there are established norms and beliefs as to the printing sequence of national editions. While the data that supports these norms may not always be clear, incontrovertible evidence would be needed to shift these viewpoints. Contemporaneous newspaper reviews can also be helpful in determining sequencing, so they are discussed when appropriate below.

National Variants:

In a few cases, specific titles had different content depending on where they were published. In such cases it could be argued that both are essentially first editions of their respective content. This will be referenced where appropriate but for our full article on ‘National Variants’ please click here. Lastly, a few assumptions are made which could always be in error. Any corrections are most welcome or if our readers have documents showing publishing dates please let us know.

The True Firsts:

Below are the details on the first editions for the 16 Christie books published from 1920 to 1932. For collectors of true first editions, these are the ones you want to obtain. Before reading the details, take a guess at how many were actually first published in the UK!

The Mysterious Affair at Styles: First edition: USA.

Published on the 15th October 1920 by John Lane, New York, USA. The second nation to print this book was Canada where Ryerson Press, Toronto, also printed the book in October 1920 shortly after John Lane, who provided Ryerson with the same printing sheets. The UK edition was not published until 26 January 1921. The New York Times Book Review reviewed the book on December 26th, 1920 while The Times Literary Supplement (London) reviewed the book on February 3rd, 1921. This supports the US then UK sequence. Of note, the first Dodd, Mead & Co printing of this title did not occur until 1926 - click here for more details on this version.

The dust jacket for the British edition had the same cover art as the American edition. However, the rear panel was different as it listed 11 books currently being sold new by The Bodley Head, London - of which this title was one.

The Secret Adversary: First edition: UK.

Published in January 1922 by John Lane, The Bodley Head, London. The jacket was priced 7/6 on the spine. The rear panel lists nine books currently being sold by their London branch. The flaps both discuss the prior book, The Mysterious Affair at Styles.

The US edition was published on June 10, 1922 by Dodd, Mead & Company, New York. The Times Literary Supplement (London) reviewed the book on January 26th, 1922 while The New York Times Book Review was on June 11th, 1922. The Dodd, Mead & Co first edition, shown above, was priced $1.75 on the front flap.

The Murder on the Links: First edition: USA.

The published date for the John Lane, The Bodley Head Ltd, Vigo St., London, W1 edition is May 18, 1923, the US edition was published two months earlier, on March 17, 1923. The New York Times reviewed this book in their ‘Latest Fiction’ section on March 25th, 1923. The Times Literary Supplement (London) reviewed the novel on June 7th, 1923.

The Man in the Brown Suit: First edition: UK.

Published on August 22, 1924 by John Lane The Bodley Head Limited, London, UK. While the US version published by Dodd Mead & Co., New York is not dated, it is believed to have been released on October 25, 1924. The Times Literary Supplement (London) reviewed the novel on the 25th September 1924. There was no review of this book in The New York Times until 1926.

Poirot Investigates: First editions: UK & USA.

This is one of the variant editions where there are differences between the UK and the US editions. The UK version was the first published on March 21, 1924 by John Lane The Bodley Head Limited, London. However, the US edition published on April 18, 1925 by Dodd, Mead & Company, New York, contained three additional stories not included in the UK version. These were The Chocolate Box, The Veiled Lady & The Lost Mine, which weren’t printed in book form in the UK until 1974.

Thus, for this more complete version of Poirot Investigates, the US version is the first printing. The Times Literary Supplement (London) reviewed the book on the April 3rd, 1924. Of note, The New York Times chose to review the UK version on the April 20th, 1924 despite no version currently for sale in the US.

The Secret of Chimneys: First edition: UK.

Published on June 12, 1925 by John Lane The Bodley Head Limited, London. The Times Literary Supplement (London) reviewed the novel on the July 9th, 1925. There is no known book review in The New York Times, but it is commonly believed the US version was published on August 29, 1925.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd: First edition: UK.

Published on May 27, 1926 by W. Collins Sons & Co. Ltd., London. It was reviewed by The Times Literary Supplement (London) on the June 10th, 1926. In the US, Dodd, Mead & Company published the book on July 16, 1926 and it was first reviewed in The New York Times Book Review on the July 18th, 1926.

The Big Four: First edition: UK.

Published on January 27th, 1927 by W. Collins Sons & Co. Ltd., London. The Times Literary Supplement (London) review was on February 3rd, 1927. The US first edition just states ‘1927’, but the second edition states that the first printing was in September 1927, while some have documented a July publication. The New York Times Book Review covered the book on October 2nd, 1927 supporting the September release. Of note, this is the only book where the UK and US front cover art on the dust wrappers were identical (the US copy is shown with the rare wrap around band).

The Mystery of the Blue Train: First edition: UK.

Published on March 29th, 1928 by W. Collins Sons & Co. Ltd., London. The Times Literary Supplement (London) reviewed the book on May 3rd, 1928. The US version was published July 20th, 1928 by Dodd, Mead & Company and was reviewed by The New York Times Book Review on August 12th, 1928.

The Seven Dials Mystery: First edition: UK.

Published on January 24th, 1929 by W. Collins Sons & Co. Ltd., London. The earliest review in the UK was in The Scotsman (UK) on January 28th, 1929. While the US first printing just states ‘1929’, later printings do reference March 1929 as the first printing. Other researchers claim the publication date in the US to be March 8, 1929. The New York Times Book Review review was published on April 7th, 1929 supporting this publication date. For an in-depth article on this title and all its various printings, including more images, go to this link.

Partners in Crime: First edition: USA.

As with Murder on the Links there is a lot of conflicting information for the publishing sequence of this book. Dodd, Mead & Co, New York published the book with a ‘1929’ date which was not updated or clarified even with the Grosset reprint with a month. However, archivists have found documentation that it was published on August 16, 1929. W. Collins Sons & Co, London, first published the book on September 16th, 1929. However, it should be noted that in future editions, Collins stated the first printing was in April 1929. The first known newspaper review was in The Scotsman (UK) on September 16th, 1929. The first US review was in The New York Times Book Review on September 22nd, 1929. Given the dates of newspaper reviews the April date from the Collins reprint certainly seems to be an error but they also seem to cause uncertainty on the sequence of printing.

The Mysterious Mr. Quin: First edition: UK.

Commonly believed to have been published on April 14, 1930 by W. Collins Sons & Co. Ltd., London, still under just the ‘Collins’ imprint. Despite later editions from Collins stating that March 1930 was the date of the first impression, these are likely in error given that the first newspaper review was in the Daily Express (UK) on April 25th, 1930. The US version just states 1930 but must have been within a week of the UK release given The New York Times Book Review article on May 4th, 1930. The believed release date in the US is April 25, 1930.

The Murder at the Vicarage: First edition: UK.

October 1930: Collins, The Crime Club, London. The book was released on the 13th October and the first review was in the Daily Mirror (UK) on October 15th, 1930. The US version from Dodd, Mead & Co only states October 1930, it is believed to have been released on the 24th. With the first US review in The New York Times Book Review on November 30th, 1930, it supports the position that the UK version was printed first. Of note this book marks a transition for Collins shifting to The Crime Club imprint and transitioning from black to orange cloth boards. Copies of this book can be found in both colours of cloth. However, the black covered book only states “Collins” on the foot of the spine, while the orange covered book states “The Crime Club”. It appears that with this book Collins was beginning to test the use of a new cloth. The first version of this book should be considered the black boards. While Collins later returned to the use of black cloth for a number of books, it was primarily for reprints and some colonial or export first edition copies. After this book, orange was the dominant colour choice with a few exceptions and should then be considered the first UK version.

The Murder at Hazelmoor: First Edition: USA.

The first printing of this title was the Dodd, Mead & Co, New York version, was 14th August 1931 (per US Library of Congres copyright). In the UK, Collins, The Crime Club published the book on September 7th, 1931, with the original title Christie had assigned to the book – The Sittaford Mystery. The New York Times Book Review's issue of 16 August 1931. In the UK, the Daily Mirror wrote a review on October 23rd, 1931.

Peril at End House: First edition: USA (debated).

Published by Dodd, Mead & Co, New York, on February 26, 1932. Some researchers believe this book was released earlier in the UK by Collins' The Crime Club on February 7th, 1932. However, while the first UK edition only states 1932 later editions add in the month of publication as March implying the actual release date was not in February. The New York Times Book Review for this book was published on March 6th, 1932. In the UK, the first review was in The Times Literary Supplement on April 14th, 1932. If the book had been released in February in the UK one would expect an earlier review in the press than April.

The Thirteen Problems: First edition: UK.

Published by Collins, The Crime Club, London, on June 6, 1932. The book was not published in the US until February 24, 1933 under the alternate title The Tuesday Club Murders. The first review in the UK was in The Scotsman on June 6th, 1932. The first US review was in The New York Times Book Review's March 5th, 1933 issue.

Summary:

Across the first 16 Agatha Christie books published between 1920 and 1932, there were 10 books that were definitely first published in the UK, 4 that were first published in the US, 1 where the sequence is currently debatable, and one title (Poirot Investigates) that was first published in the UK but the US version contains additional stories, so for those extra three stories the US copy is their true first. As stated earlier, if you have insights that can help clarify any of the missing dates or bring certainty to any of the sequences, please do let us know. In future articles we will explore the rest of the 1930s and then move into the 1940s ~ a period of time when most of Christie’s books were published in the USA first.

An example of Collins getting confused! This reprint of Partners in Crime significantly misstates the first printing date.