Bill W. by Robert Thomsen — 1975 Fourth Printing | Original Dust Jacket
Published in 1975, Bill W. by Robert Thomsen is the landmark biography of William Griffith Wilson (Bill W.), co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Thomsen knew Bill personally and was given access to an extraordinary body of source material in preparing the biography. The resulting book traces Bill’s life from his Vermont childhood and military service through his alcoholism, spiritual experience, meeting with Dr. Bob Smith, the founding and growth of Alcoholics Anonymous, and his later years.
Published only four years after Bill W.’s death in 1971, Bill W. remains one of the most important biographical works relating to the history of Alcoholics Anonymous and its co-founder.
1975 Fourth Printing
This copy was published by Harper & Row in 1975. The copyright page contains the number line:
76 77 78 79 10 9 8 7 6 5 4
identifying this copy as the fourth printing.
It retains its original illustrated dust jacket, featuring the familiar portrait of Bill W. and the original $10.95 price on the front flap.
Contemporary A.A. Grapevine Review
Of particular interest, affixed to the front pastedown of this copy is a contemporary review of Bill W. from the August 1975 issue of the A.A. Grapevine.
The review describes Thomsen’s biography as both a portrait of Bill and an important account of the origins and development of Alcoholics Anonymous. Its presence in the book provides an interesting contemporary A.A. response to the biography shortly after its publication.
The review itself is headed “Around AA — Items of AA information and experience” and bears the notation:
Copyright August 1975 A.A. Grapevine, Inc.
Institutional Provenance
This copy also bears ownership stamps from the:
Alcohol & Drug Abuse Division 81 River Street Montpelier, Vermont 05602
The stamp appears on the title page and rear endpaper.
An older sales receipt remains affixed to the rear pastedown and is stamped “Received May 22 2004.”
These markings indicate that the book was formerly held by Vermont’s Alcohol & Drug Abuse Division before eventually entering private circulation.
There is an interesting geographic connection here as well: Bill Wilson was born in East Dorset, Vermont, and spent important portions of his childhood in the state. While the institutional ownership does not establish any direct association with Bill W. himself, it gives this particular copy a fitting Vermont provenance.
Book Details
Title: Bill W.
Author: Robert Thomsen
Publisher: Harper & Row, Publishers
Publication Year: 1975
Printing: Fourth Printing
Binding: Blue cloth hardcover
Dust Jacket: Original dust jacket
Original Jacket Price: $10.95
ISBN: 0-06-014267-7
Library of Congress: 74-1861
Jacket Design: Luba Litwak
Book Design: C. Linda Dingler
Condition
Book: Good to Very Good condition. The original blue cloth binding remains attractive, with some light shelf wear and rubbing, particularly along the extremities. The spine lettering remains bright and legible. The binding appears sound.
This is a former institutional copy and bears Alcohol & Drug Abuse Division, Montpelier, Vermont ownership stamps on the title page and rear endpaper. A contemporary August 1975 A.A. Grapevine review of the book has been affixed to the front pastedown. An older sales receipt, bearing a May 22, 2004 received stamp, is affixed to the rear pastedown.
Dust Jacket: Good condition. The original dust jacket is complete but shows considerable age and use, including overall toning, rubbing and surface wear, creasing, edge wear, and several small chips and tears, particularly along the upper edge, corners, and spine ends. There is a more noticeable tear/separation near the lower rear spine fold. Despite the wear, the jacket remains intact and presents well, retaining the original artwork, flap text, and $10.95 publisher’s price.
Please review all photographs carefully for the exact condition.
Collector’s Note
While later printings of Bill W. are obtainable, copies retaining their original 1975 dust jackets are considerably more desirable than jacketless examples.
This particular copy has an additional historical character because of its former Vermont Alcohol & Drug Abuse Division ownership and, especially, the contemporary August 1975 A.A. Grapevine review preserved inside the book. Rather than representing a pristine collector’s copy, this is an interesting working copy with documented institutional use and material directly relating to the book’s reception within Alcoholics Anonymous during its original year of publication.
