Alcoholics Anonymous Second Edition First Printing from 1955 - RDJ
Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How Many Thousands of Men and Women Have Recovered from Alcoholism
Second Edition — First Printing (1955)
Published by Alcoholics Anonymous Publishing, Inc., New York City
Includes a reproduction dust jacket styled after the original 1955 release.
Description:
This is an authentic First Printing of the Second Edition (1955) of the Alcoholics Anonymous Big Book — one of the most historically significant printings in A.A. history. The Second Edition was first introduced at the 1955 International A.A. Convention in St. Louis, marking a major milestone in the fellowship’s growth and the introduction of many new stories reflecting A.A.’s worldwide expansion.
The Second Edition retained the original text of the first 164 pages, while revising and expanding the personal stories section to include 37 new accounts. For the first time, it featured members from a much wider range of professions, ages, and backgrounds — demonstrating that A.A.’s principles could help anyone, anywhere.
Printing Identification & Verification:
The first three printings of the Second Edition (1955–1959) do not list printing numbers on the copyright page, which can make identification challenging. However, this book has been verified as a First Printing (1955) using the following established indicators:
Publisher: “Alcoholics Anonymous Publishing, Inc.” (changed to “Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.” beginning with the 4th printing)
Page xx, line 6: “realy” misspelled (corrected in later printings)
Page 16, asterisk note: reads “AA is now composed of nearly 6,000 groups (1955).”
Dust Jacket: Reproduction of the original Second Edition jacket design showing “Published by A.A. Pub., Inc.” on the spine and identifying it as the New and Revised Edition.
These combined features confirm this volume as a First Printing of the Second Edition, the same version distributed at the 1955 St. Louis Convention.
Condition:
Book: Fair to Good condition. Blue cloth boards show moderate fading and a few light stains. Spine lettering is dulled but legible. Interior pages are clean and unmarked with even age toning. Binding repaired with tape at the title page. Slight splitting to the binding at page 574.
Dust Jacket: Reproduction, clean and well-fitted, styled to match the 1955 original.
No writing, highlighting, or missing pages.
Historical Context:
The publication of the Second Edition reflected the growth of Alcoholics Anonymous from fewer than 100 members in 1939 to over 150,000 by 1955. The revised foreword introduced the now-iconic statement of fellowship’s reach:
“Sixteen years have elapsed between our first printing of this book and the presentation in 1955 of our Second Edition. In that brief space, Alcoholics Anonymous has mushroomed into nearly 6,000 groups whose membership is far above 150,000 recovered alcoholics.”
This edition also featured expanded appendices, additional recommendations from the fields of religion and medicine, and for the first time, a section outlining A.A.’s Twelve Traditions.
