First impression
1957At a glance
Points of issue
- Dust jacket, front flapPrinted price on the front flap: 13s. 6d.→ first issue jacket
PninWilliam Heinemann
First published 1957
Hardback
Pnin (1957)
Publisher William Heinemann
Year 1957
Identification points are listed only where two independent sources agree. Last reviewed 29 Oct 2026.
Market value
What decides the price
- It is the first UK edition; the true first was published elsewhere.
- The first printing is told from later ones by 1 point of issue listed below.
- The original dust jacket carries much of the price for a book of this age; its condition matters as much as the book's.
- Condition is graded separately for book and jacket, from Fine down to Poor.
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Sales record
No sales recorded yet
We value a printing from verified sales of that exact printing, and none of the first impression has come to auction in our records so far. The chart and the value by condition appear here as soon as one does.
Pro members with this book on their wantlist are emailed when it sells under their price.
Quick answer
- How do I identify a Pnin 1957 hardback?
- Check these points. Dust jacket, front flap: Printed price on the front flap: 13s. 6d. Each point is confirmed by at least two independent sources.
- Who published the Pnin 1957 hardback?
- William Heinemann, London, in 1957, in hardback.
How to identify this edition
The true first is the Doubleday edition, Garden City, New York, 1957; Heinemann's London edition of the same year is the first British edition. It has 191 pages, octavo, in black cloth with white lettering on the spine. The pictorial jacket is by Jerzy (J.) Faczynski and is priced 13s. 6d. at the foot of the front flap. The verso reads 'First published 1957' with no later impressions listed. Jackets usually carry a Rebecca West blurb praising Lolita on the rear flap, in many copies as a pasted-on printed label.
How William Heinemann marked its first editions
A Heinemann first printing normally carries a "First published (year)" line on the back of the title page and no later impression or edition listed under it. Heinemann recorded reprints and new editions in that same place.
How to read it
Read the full guide to William Heinemann first editions, decade by decade, and check your copy's copyright page against it. Our number line decoder reads the printing from the row of numbers.
Printing by printing
Printings and states
Frequently asked questions
How do I identify a Pnin 1957 hardback?
Check these points. Dust jacket, front flap: Printed price on the front flap: 13s. 6d. Each point is confirmed by at least two independent sources.
Who published the Pnin 1957 hardback?
William Heinemann, London, in 1957, in hardback.
Where these facts come from
- Pnin editions, Open Library (openlibrary.org)
- PniN, Adrian Harrington Ltd via AbeBooks (abebooks.co.uk)
- PniN, Adrian Harrington Ltd (second copy) via AbeBooks (abebooks.co.uk)
- Pnin (first UK edition), Brainerd Phillipson Rare Books via AbeBooks (abebooks.co.uk)
- PNIN, Kurt Gippert Bookseller via AbeBooks (abebooks.co.uk)
- Pnin, Librairie Le Feu Follet via AbeBooks (abebooks.co.uk)
- PNIN second impression, AbeBooks listing (abebooks.co.uk)
Points of issue are listed only where at least two independent sources agree. Last reviewed 29 October 2026. Reviewed by Harriet Ellis; read how we check facts.
Collecting guides
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