Book Collecting

Double Sin and Other Stories (1961) – Agatha Christie | First Edition Identification Guide

Agatha Christie - Double Sin 1961 US
Double Sin 1961 US

Double Sin and Other Stories is a short story collection written by Agatha Christie and first published in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company in 1961 and retailed for $3.50. The collection contains eight short stories and was not published in the UK; however all of the stories were published in other UK collections.

List of stories:

  • Double Sin
  • Wasp’s Nest
  • The Theft of the Royal Ruby (also known as The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding)
  • The Dressmaker’s Doll
  • Greenshaw’s Folly
  • The Double Clue
  • The Last Seance
  • Sanctuary

Publication history

  • 1961, Dodd Mead and Company (New York), Hardcover, 247 pp
  • 1962, Pocket Books (New York), Paperback, (Pocket number 6144), 181 pp
  • 1964, Dell Books, Paperback, 191 pp

First publication of stories in the US

  • The Double Clue: August 1925 (Volume 41, Number 4) issue of the Blue Book Magazine with an uncredited illustration.
  • The Last Seance: November 1926 issue of Ghost Stories magazine under the title The Woman Who Stole a Ghost.
  • Wasp’s Nest: 9 March 1929 issue of Detective Story Magazine under the title The Worst of All.
  • Double Sin: 30 March 1929 issue of Detective Story Magazine under the title By Road or Rail.
  • Sanctuary: serialised in the weekly newspaper supplement This Week magazine in two instalments from 12 to 19 September 1954 under the title Murder at the Vicarage (not to be confused with the novel of the same name) with illustrations by Robert Fawcett.
  • Greenshaw’s Folly: March 1957 (Volume 29, Number 3) issue of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, unillustrated.
  • The Dressmaker’s Doll: June 1959 (Volume 33, Number 6) issue of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, unillustrated. The story had previously appeared in Canada in the 25 October 1958 issue of the Star Weekly magazine.
  • The Theft of the Royal Ruby: serialised in the weekly newspaper supplement This Week magazine in two instalments from 25 September to 2 October 1960 with illustrations by William A. Smith.

UK book appearances of stories

  • The Hound of Death (1933): The Last Seance.
  • The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding (1960): The Theft of the Royal Ruby (under the title The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding) and Greenshaw’s Folly.
  • Poirot’s Early Cases (1974): Double Sin, Wasp’s Nest, and The Double Clue.
  • Miss Marple’s Final Cases and Two Other Stories (1979): The Dressmaker’s Doll and Sanctuary.

Double Sin and Other Stories – First Edition Book Identification Guide

The books are listed in the order of publication. While the majority of Agatha Christie’s books were first published in the UK. There are many titles that were first published in the US. The title of the book may differs from the UK edition in some cases.

YearTitlePublisherFirst edition/printing identification points
1961Double Sin and Other StoriesDodd, Mead & Co, NY, [1961]First American edition. Copyright 1961 stated on the copyright page. No statement of later printings. Grey boards lettered in green. No UK edition. Price $ 3.50.

Note about Book Club Editions (BCE) and reprints:

UK: You can see statements of later reprint dates or of book club on the copyright page.

US: The US reprint publishers usually use the same sheets as the first edition and are harder to identify by looking at the title page or the copyright page. One may identify a BCE by looking at the DJ, which doesn’t have a price on top of the front flap and a “Book Club Edition” imprint at the bottom. If the dust jacked is clipped at both the top/bottom of the front flap. You can safely assume it’s a BCE . If the book is missing the dust jacket. Later BCE editions can be identified by its plain boards, while first printings are issued in quarter cloth.

Please refer to the gallery for detailed images of true first edition bindings and dust jackets.

Double Sin and Other Stories – First Edition Dust Jacket Identification Guide

First edition bindings and various dust jacket printings identification.

Reference:

BOOKSTORE: Rare, Antiquarian, First editions, Illustrated Children's Books

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