The Ultimate Complete Set of First Edition Big Books

All 16 Printings (1939–1954) — Including All Cloth Variants — Each with Original Dust Jacket

Overview

Offered here is a fully assembled and historically complete set of First Edition Alcoholics Anonymous Big Books — spanning all sixteen printings issued between April 1939 and August 1954.

This set includes:

• Every First Edition printing (1st through 16th)

• All early cloth color variants

• A total of 21 books

• Each copy retaining its original dust jacket

Never before offered as a single collection, this set represents a comprehensive physical record of Alcoholics Anonymous during its foundational fifteen years.

From the red-bound First Printing of 1939 to the final navy-blue printing of 1954, this collection traces the Fellowship’s evolution through growth, wartime adjustment, organizational maturity, and transition toward the Second Edition.

What Makes This Set Unique

• 1939 First Printing (Red Cloth) with Original Dust Jacket

• 1941 Second Printing in Three Cloth Variants (Light Blue, Navy Blue, and Rare Red)

• 1942 Third Printing in Three Variants (Light Blue, Olive Green, Navy Blue)

• 1943 Fourth Printing in Olive Green and Navy Blue

• Rare January 1945 Seventh Printing with its original dust jacket

• All subsequent printings through 1954 in navy blue

• Every volume accompanied by its original dust jacket

The survival rate of early dust jackets is dramatically lower than that of the books themselves. Having all printings represented with original jackets significantly elevates the historical integrity of the set.

The Complete First Edition Sequence

First Printing (April 1939) — Red cloth

Second Printing (March 1941) — Light Blue, Navy Blue, Red

Third Printing (June 1942) — Light Blue, Olive Green, Navy Blue

Fourth Printing (March 1943) — Olive Green, Navy Blue

Fifth Printing (January 1944) — Light Blue

Sixth Printing (June 1944) — Navy Blue

Seventh Printing (January 1945) — Navy Blue

Eighth Printing (February 1945) — Navy Blue (smallest wartime format)

Ninth Printing (January 1946) — Navy Blue

Tenth Printing (August 1946) — Navy Blue

Eleventh Printing (June 1947) — Navy Blue

Twelfth Printing (October 1948) — Navy Blue

Thirteenth Printing (February 1950) — Navy Blue

Fourteenth Printing (July 1951) — Navy Blue

Fifteenth Printing (January 1954) — Navy Blue

Sixteenth Printing (August 1954) — Navy Blue

Total: 21 Books with Original Dust Jackets

Historical Significance

Together, these volumes document:

• The early textual refinements of the 1941 Second Printing

• The evolving “Now We Are…” membership page

• Wartime paper restrictions and the 1945 size reduction

• The launch of the AA Grapevine (June 1944)

• The period leading to adoption of the Twelve Traditions (1950)

• The transition from Works Publishing, Inc. to Alcoholics Anonymous Publishing, Inc.

Few sets allow a collector to hold the complete First Edition narrative in chronological order.

Condition Overview

All volumes are structurally sound and well-preserved examples of their respective printings. Cloth bindings remain strong, gilt spine lettering is largely bright and legible, and interiors show typical age toning consistent with wartime and postwar paper stock.

Each book retains its original dust jacket, exhibiting varying degrees of edge wear consistent with age, yet remaining complete and displayable.

Detailed condition notes and photographs for each volume are available upon request.

For the Collector

This is not simply a grouping of early Big Books.

It is a unified First Edition archive — assembled to represent the full scope of the Fellowship’s formative publishing history.

A set of this completeness — including all early cloth variants and original jackets — is seldom encountered.

For a detailed printing-by-printing history of the First Edition Big Book (1939–1954), including cloth variations, wartime changes, and the evolution of the Fellowship, we invite you to read our full historical overview here →