Easton Press

Based in Norwalk, Connecticut, Easton Press is a publisher specializing in high-quality leather-bound, (mostly) reprint editions of classics, poetry and art books, popular literature, and science fiction. Easton’s list of series include: Signed First Editions, Signed First Editions of Science Fiction, Signed Modern Classics, Masterpieces of Science Fiction, Library of the Presidents, 100 Greatest Books Ever Written, Great Books of the 20th Century, Books That Changed the World, [Facsimile] First Edition Library, the hand-numbered Deluxe Limited Editions, and more.

Easton Press books generally have distinctive features such as a genuine, premium leather binding, 22kt gold cover and spine lettering and decoration, specially milled acid-neutral paper, Smyth-sewn pages with gilded edges, and endsheets of moirX silk with a permanent satin ribbon page-marker. However, there is some variation between Easton collections. For instance, Masterpieces of Science Fiction books do not have moirX fabric endsheets, but have all of the other Easton traits.

Some of Easton’s books are arranged in series to which a customer can subscribe, receiving a new book every month. This can apply to collections such as The Library of Great Poetry (25 volumes), The Complete Novels of Charles Dickens (16 volumes), and C. S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia (seven volumes).

Most of the press’ series books tend to hold or increase in value, especially the two signed first edition series (Signed First Editions and Signed First Editions of Science Fiction), which are issued in limited numbers, usually between $1,000 and $1,500 each.

First Edition Identification

Despite working mostly in reprints, Easton Press produces several series of first editions and an occasional first edition volume; these are clearly identified as first editions typically on the spine, the title page, and the signature page.