first editions

[gizmodious]

Can someone please tell me how I would know if a book is the first edition? Thanks in anticipation

[cherryelm]

I remember reading somewhere that you can tell on more modern books from the row of numbers that are on the page at the beginning of the book with the publishers details. A first edition has 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 a second edition has 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1 therefore a third edition 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1 2 and so on.