The Sword of Shannara
Originally, The Sword of Shannara was published in 1977 in a large, softcover, trade paperack edition. It wasn't released as a hardcover at first. But as it climbed and stayed on the New York Times bestselling paperback list, it caught the attention of many book organizations and book clubs. One of the book clubs decided it wanted to honor Terry and The Sword of Shannara, but to do so the book had to be in a hardcover format.
A book club release meant more people would read the book—and more future fans.
Ballantine Books thought it a good idea, so they printed 3500 first edition/first printing hardcover copies. Here is a checklist of how to spot one of the rare first edition first printings:
- On the inside publishing page, a stated "First Edition"
- On the inside publishing page, a number line reading "2 4 6 8 9 7 5 3"
- The bottom of the dust jacket's spine reads "Random House"
- The price of $12.95 is located on the inside dust jacket flap
- A pink indented "TB" is pressed into the front board of the book
- The far left edge of a foldout painting inserted into the book (see below photos)
Click on the pictures above to accompany the descriptions. One has to realize that over the years many of those 3500 copies have been destroyed, lost, or forgotten, so they do not materialize into the collecting market very often. When they do, expect to pay a great deal for them depending on their condition.
Note: There were also several hundred hardcovers printed for the United Kingdom with "Raven Books" written on the dust jacket spine.
Note: If a copy has the correct publishing page but lacks a price on its dust jacket, someone could have swapped the true first edition dust jacket for a cleaner-looking book club edition dust jacket.
The Elfstones of Shannara
The Elfstones of Shannara also has a very small first edition first printing run in hardcover. Del Rey once again mass produced the large, softcover, trade paperback edition, but printed only 5000 hardcover copies. These are nearly as hard to find in the collecting market as The Sword of Shannara hardcover. Here is a checklist of how to spot one of the rare first edition first printings:
- On the inside publishing page, a stated "First Edition: July 1982"
- On the inside publishing page, a number line reading "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1"
- The bottom of the dust jacket's spine reads "A Del Rey Book" with Del Rey's logo
- The price of $15.95 is located on the inside dust jacket flap
The Wishsong of Shannara
The Wishsong of Shannara also has a very small first edition first printing run in hardcover. Del Rey once again mass produced the large, softcover, trade paperback edition, but printed only 5000 hardcover copies. These are nearly as hard to find in the collecting market as The Sword of Shannara hardcover. Here is a checklist of how to spot one of the rare first edition first printings:
- On the inside publishing page, a stated "First Edition: July 1985"
- On the inside publishing page, a number line reading "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1"
- The bottom of the dust jacket's spine reads "A Del Rey Book" with Del Rey's logo
- The price of $18.95 is located on the inside dust jacket flap
Finding the original Shannara trilogy in hardcover is difficult, but they occasionally become available on Ebay Auctions, as well as several other places like ABE Books and Powell's City of Books. Check all of them often if you are hunting for any of Terry's books—the rare ones or the new ones.
Russ Charpentier has also been authorized to produce high-quality maps from the Shannara series. Click Store to read more on these fantastic additions for your reading enjoyment!
Below you will also find links in different combinations to find Terry's books on eBay Auctions. Happy hunting!
