Previous Books
The princess bride : S. Morgenstern's classic tale of true love and high adventure : the "good parts" version by Call Number: PS3557.O384 P75 1999ISBN: 9780747543220Publication Date: 1973October 2024 Book Club
Never Whistle at Night: an Indigenous dark fiction anthology by Call Number: PS647.I5 N48 2023ISBN: 9780593468463Publication Date: 2023-09-19November 2024 Book Club
Pretty Girls by Call Number: PS3569.L275 P74 2017ISBN: 9780062499554Publication Date: 2017-02-07February 2025 Book Club
Home Fire by Call Number: PR9540.9.S485 H66 2017ISBN: 9780735217683Publication Date: 2017-08-15March 2025 Book Club
A History of Cover Art for The Princess Bride
1973 First Edition Hardcover
This was the first hardcover edition of the Princess bride, published in 1973. It was presented as though it was authored by S. Morgenstern and abridged by William Goldman, with Goldman's abridgment commentary being presented in striking red text. This was an uncommon text color choice and remains uncommon today, making this edition rather valuable. The cover was designed by Wendell Minor.
NSFW 1974 Paperback Edition
The cover art for the 1974 paperback edition published by Ballentine books was HIGHLY controversial, due to the imagery of a naked woman on the front and also the lack of relevance any part of the illustration has to the actual book. They stopped printing this edition with this cover art after just a week, so there are only about a thousand copies in existance. It is also the last edition to feature Goldman's abridgment comments in red ink, making it very valuable. Abby Rose actually owns a copy of this rare book, and it was the first copy of the book she had ever seen!
1977 Front Cover
The 1977 Ballantine books edition of the princess bride was unique for two reasons: the intricate illustrated map that came with the paperback book and the eye catching slogan on the front: "A hot Fairy tale." The back cover is even funnier.
1977 Back Cover
This is the back cover of the 1977 edition with its... unique plot summary.
Fold Out map circa 1977
And here is the fold out map included with the 1977 Princess Bride paperback.
1973 Science Fiction Book Club Edition
This edition of the book confuses many collectors of the book who think it is the first edition, when it reality it is just an alternate printing of the book that came out the same year. The Science Fiction Book Club is a science fiction book club founded in 1953 by Doubleday, which sells and publishes Science Fiction books and exclusives of all kinds, including The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and books in the Inheritance Cycle. It is confusing because this edition and the original first edition have the same ISBN number, but they are in fact distinct printings. You can further tell that they were not printed by the same company because this edition features Goldman's abridgment comments in italics rather than red text.
2014 Folio Society Cover
In 2014 the Folio Society Published this illustrated edition of the Princess Bride with art by Mark Thomas. The illustrations are in the style of graphic novels and seem to be influenced by the film.
2013 Princess Bride 30th Anniversary Edition - illustrated.
This edition released in 2013 to mark the 30th anniversary of the book's publication. It contains 50 illustrations in sepia tone by Michael Manomivibul. The illustrations in this edition are also used in the Easton Press leather bound edition of the same year.