I'm halfway through reading this book - the 1985 Corgi edition - and thought you might be interested in its printing history.
First released in the US in 1959, it was published by Robert Hale in 1960 and went into reprint in the same year.
Between then and my edition the book was reprinted or reissued as a paperback 12 times. It was a multi-million bestseller.
Of course it became a massive hit film by Alfred Hitchcock in 1960 so Hale must have benefitted greatly from the cinematic release.
Very few books these days seem to show their printing history. I used to find it quite fascinating. And of course it was a measure of the book's popularity, for all browsers to see.
Nik Morton
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4 comments:
I had no idea this was published by Hale in the UK!
You state it was first released in US in 1959 and Hale published it in 1960.
So who first published the book in 1959?
If not Hale, then I wonder what induced them to buy the pubication rights.
A very astute move, however.
Marg
That's the way to do it - write a book that becomes a cinema classic. (any Hollywood producers out there looking for a UK crime thriller?) It would certainly help mine and my publisher's plan to retire to the Bahamas...
The Bahamas - overrated and too expensive! IMHO
Nik/Ross Morton
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