The Ghost Writer, cover of another edition (the Jonathan Cape 1979 cover is not yet photographed)

Cover of another edition of this book. The Jonathan Cape 1979 jacket has not been photographed yet.

Hardback Zuckerman Bound

The Ghost Writer (1979)

Publisher Jonathan Cape Year 1979 ISBN 9780224017640

Identification points are listed only where two independent sources agree. Last reviewed 20 Oct 2026.

In short

Quick answer

Who published The Ghost Writer 1979 hardback?
Jonathan Cape, London, in 1979, in hardback.
What decides the price
  • It is the first UK edition; the true first was published elsewhere.
  • 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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Publisher's practice

How Jonathan Cape marked its first editions

  • UK first editions name Jonathan Cape on the title page and carry a "First Published" statement with the year on the reverse of the title page. A first impression shows that statement with no later printings listed beneath it.
  • Live and Let Die (1954) exists in three jacket states on first-impression copies, told apart by whether and where the jacket designer's credit appears on the front flap.
  • Press reviews printed on the jacket flaps generally indicate a jacket from a later impression; on Casino Royale (1953) a Times review on the front flap marks a later run.

Read the full guide to Jonathan Cape 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

First impression

1979

At a glance

Not yet researched

We have not yet confirmed the issue points that tell this first impression from later ones. Until we do, compare your copy's title page and copyright page with the publisher, place and year above: any later printing or edition statement means it is not this one.

Know the points? Tell us. We publish them, with credit, once a second source agrees.

Notes

The cover image shows this book but may not be this edition or printing.

Questions collectors ask

Frequently asked questions

Who published The Ghost Writer 1979 hardback?

Jonathan Cape, London, in 1979, in hardback.

Sources

Where these facts come from

  • British National Bibliography, record GB7929694

Points of issue are listed only where at least two independent sources agree. Last reviewed 20 October 2026. Reviewed by Harriet Ellis; read how we check facts.