{"product_id":"alcoholics-anonymous-big-book-second-edition-first-printing-1955-reproduction-dust-jacket","title":"Alcoholics Anonymous Second Edition — First Printing (1955) | Reproduction Dust Jacket","description":"\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eOffered here is an authentic \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eFirst Printing of the Second Edition (1955)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e of \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eAlcoholics Anonymous\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e—the Big Book—a landmark edition representing one of the most important transitions in the publishing history of Alcoholics Anonymous.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe Second Edition was introduced in conjunction with A.A.’s 1955 International Convention in St. Louis, twenty years after the meeting of Bill W. and Dr. Bob that marked the beginning of Alcoholics Anonymous. By this point, the small Fellowship represented by the original 1939 Big Book had developed into an international movement with nearly 6,000 groups and more than 150,000 members.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eWhile the basic recovery text remained substantially unchanged, the personal-story section was extensively revised to better represent the rapidly expanding Fellowship. The result was a Big Book that preserved the message carried by the First Edition while documenting an entirely new generation of Alcoholics Anonymous.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThis copy is an original \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1955 First Printing\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e, published by Alcoholics Anonymous Publishing, Inc., and is accompanied by a reproduction of the original-style Second Edition dust jacket for protection and display.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eWhy the 1955 Second Edition Matters\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eWhen \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eAlcoholics Anonymous\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e was originally published in 1939, the Fellowship consisted of only a small number of recovering alcoholics. Sixteen years later, A.A. had spread throughout the United States and into numerous countries around the world.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThat tremendous growth created a practical need for a revised Big Book. While the program of recovery remained substantially unchanged, many of the original personal stories no longer reflected the increasingly broad membership of Alcoholics Anonymous.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eFor the Second Edition, the personal-story section was substantially rebuilt with accounts representing alcoholics from a wider range of backgrounds, professions, ages, circumstances, and geographic areas.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe Second Edition therefore became much more than simply another printing of the Big Book. It was A.A.’s first major revision of its foundational book and a physical record of the Fellowship’s transformation from a small American movement into an international organization.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eIdentifying the First Printing\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe earliest Second Edition Big Books can be challenging to identify because the first several printings do not simply state their printing number on the copyright page.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p4\"\u003eThis copy contains the important characteristics associated with the \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1955 First Printing\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e, including:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe title page identifies \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAlcoholics Anonymous Publishing, Inc., New York City\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e, and is dated 1955.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe copyright page states \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e“Second Edition, New and Revised, 1955.”\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe copyright page retains the early Alcoholics Anonymous Publishing identification.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOn page xx, the well-known First Printing typographical error \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e“realy”\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e appears in the passage concerning alcoholics who came to A.A. and really tried.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Foreword retains the original 1955 references to A.A.’s growth to nearly \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e6,000 groups and more than 150,000 recovered alcoholics\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eTogether, these points identify this volume as an original \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eFirst Printing of the Second Edition\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Book From A.A.’s Era of Explosive Growth\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eOne of the fascinating aspects of the Second Edition is that its introductory material captures Alcoholics Anonymous at a precise moment in its development.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe new Foreword describes the Fellowship as having grown to nearly 6,000 groups and more than 150,000 recovered alcoholics in the sixteen years following publication of the original Big Book.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe Second Edition also preserved the Foreword to the First Edition, allowing readers to see the remarkable contrast between the tiny Fellowship that introduced itself to the world in 1939 and the organization A.A. had become by 1955.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eOther additions and revisions reflected the same maturation. Expanded supporting material and the inclusion of the Twelve Traditions documented principles developed through A.A.’s formative years to help maintain the unity of a rapidly growing Fellowship.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eFor collectors, the First Printing of the Second Edition occupies an important position between the pioneering First Edition era and the later development of the Big Book.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eEdition Details\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eTitle:\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eAlcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How Many Thousands of Men and Women Have Recovered from Alcoholism\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eEdition:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Second Edition — New and Revised\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePrinting:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e First Printing\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eYear:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e 1955\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Alcoholics Anonymous Publishing, Inc.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePlace:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e New York City\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePrinter:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e The Cornwall Press, Inc., Cornwall, New York\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Original blue cloth hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eDust Jacket:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Reproduction dust jacket; original jacket is not present\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eBook:\u003c\/b\u003e Good condition overall, with a strong and attractive appearance for an original 1955 First Printing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe original blue cloth boards retain good color and show general shelf wear, rubbing, and light handling marks. There is visible wear and some fraying at the corners and along the extremities.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe spine remains structurally sound and retains its gilt \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eAlcoholics Anonymous\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e and \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eA.A. Publishing Inc.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e lettering. The spine cloth shows noticeable fading and rubbing, particularly through the center and along the head and foot, with wear and light fraying at both ends.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe front pastedown bears a previous owner’s handwritten name and the date \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1956\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e, adding a period ownership mark from very early in the life of the book. The facing free endpaper shows a rectangular area of discoloration consistent with something having previously been affixed or stored against the page.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe interior remains complete and readily readable with expected age toning. There are scattered areas of spotting, foxing, and discoloration, including visible marks on the copyright and contents pages and occasional spots elsewhere in the preliminary material. The pages shown remain generally clean and the printed text is clear throughout.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe binding remains intact and the book presents well as an original, genuinely used example from the earliest year of the Second Edition.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eDust Jacket:\u003c\/b\u003e A clean reproduction of the original 1955 Second Edition jacket is included. It is not original to the book but provides protection and recreates the classic appearance of the First Printing for display.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003ePlease review all photographs carefully, as they form an important part of the condition description and show the exact copy being offered.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCollector’s Note\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eThe \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1955 First Printing of the Second Edition Big Book\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e is one of the cornerstone volumes in an advanced Alcoholics Anonymous collection.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eIt captures A.A. at a defining moment—twenty years after its beginnings, sixteen years after publication of the original Big Book, and at the point when the Fellowship had grown large enough that its foundational book needed to reflect an entirely new generation of recovering alcoholics.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003eFor collectors assembling the major editions and printings of \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eAlcoholics Anonymous\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e, the Second Edition, First Printing represents an essential milestone in the history of the Big Book and the worldwide growth of A.A.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sean McShane","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49988991385842,"sku":null,"price":295.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0328\/4625\/0120\/files\/D6533ACA-0DF1-44CD-BB72-8FFFA0A8DC28.jpg?v=1787890262","url":"https:\/\/recoverycollectibles.com\/products\/alcoholics-anonymous-big-book-second-edition-first-printing-1955-reproduction-dust-jacket","provider":"Recovery Collectibles","version":"1.0","type":"link"}