Jaws by Peter Benchley is a 1974 Doubleday & Company hardcover thriller with its illustrated dust jacket, 311 pages, and ISBN 0-385-04771-1.
This is the novel that introduced readers to the great white shark terrorizing the fictional seaside community of Amity and became the source for the famous 1975 film. The book follows police chief Martin Brody as fear, local business interests, and the growing threat offshore collide. This copy gives a reader the original novel in a clean hardcover format with the recognizable early Jaws jacket design.
Details
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Item: Hardcover vintage book
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Title: Jaws
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Author: Peter Benchley
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Illustrator: not confirmed from photos
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Publisher: Doubleday & Company, Inc., Garden City, New York
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Publication Year: 1974
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Edition and Printing: 1974 Doubleday printing. First edition is not stated on the photographed copyright page, so this copy is not identified as a first printing.
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Format and Binding: Hardcover with black cloth boards
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Dust Jacket: Present, black illustrated jacket with swimmer and shark design
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Pages: 311
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Genre: Thriller, suspense fiction
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Language: English
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ISBN: 0-385-04771-1
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Dimensions: approximately 8 3/4 inches by 6 inches by 1/2 inch
Condition Grade: Good
Positives
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Graded Good: Complete hardcover reading copy with a clean interior and its original style dust jacket still present.
- The 311 interior pages are clean, sharp, and easy to read.
- No writing or dog-eared pages were reported.
- Black cloth boards remain clean and presentable beneath the jacket.
- The binding appears intact in the photographed open-page views.
Issues / Wear
- The dust jacket shows visible rubbing, surface scuffing, and shelf wear across the dark front and back panels.
- Jacket edges and corners show wear, including small creases, rubbing, and short tears or losses at several corner and spine-edge areas.
- The jacket has more noticeable wear along the lower front edge and at the upper corners.
- Pages show light age toning, particularly toward the edges, while remaining clean and legible.
Condition Grade Key
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Near Fine: Almost perfect. Very minor signs of age only.
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Very Good: Shows light use. Sound and attractive with minor flaws.
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Good: Complete and intact. Noticeable wear consistent with age and use.
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Fair: Shows significant wear. Readable or usable but clearly used.
Collector's Notes
Jaws was published by Doubleday in 1974. The novel became a major bestseller before Steven Spielberg's film adaptation arrived in 1975.
The 311-page hardcover format suits readers who want Benchley's original story as well as collectors interested in books connected to landmark films.
This copy retains the striking black dust jacket with the swimmer above the approaching shark, an image closely associated with the early hardcover edition.
The clean interior makes this a copy that can still be read comfortably while the jacket gives it the shelf presence people remember.
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Disclaimer
All items are vintage and may show signs of age, wear, or use consistent with their history. Photos show the exact condition of each piece, please review them carefully, as they are part of the description.
Care and Handling:
Handle with clean, dry hands. Store upright, out of direct sunlight, at about 68°F and 40 to 50% relative humidity. Avoid damp areas and extreme temperature swings.
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