A fine copy of the first U.S. edition, first printing of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the American title of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, published by Scholastic on 1 September 1998, approximately fourteen months after the appearance of the U.K. first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone on 26 June 1997. This edition marks the first appearance of the now-iconic Harry Potter logo designed by Mary GrandPré for the American market, a design later adopted by Warner Bros. for use across the wider Harry Potter franchise. The book displays all requisite first-issue points. It is bound in the correct red spine over purple boards, with “J.K. Rowling” printed in full at the head of the spine. The copyright page bears the complete number line 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 and states “Printed in the U.S.A.”
The book is accompanied by a fine, unfaded first-printing dust jacket, identifiable by the quote from The Guardian on the rear panel. From the second printing onwards, this was replaced by a quote from Publishers Weekly. The dust jacket is now protected in a removable Brodart archival cover.
A fine, unread copy, with clean and bright pages, free from inscriptions, markings or creasing. The boards are sharp, the binding square and firm, and the spine ends and corner tips show no appreciable wear. The book is housed in a custom-made half-leather clamshell box.
A highly collectible example of the first American printing.
