Quick Guide to Giant Dust Jacket Backs
1931-1986

The back of a dust jacket can help you date it. This is particularly useful when the front or inverse don't provide conclusive information.

This quick guide describes the major giant dust jacket backs used in the series 1931-1986. Anomalies exist, but those listed here are the common ones seen by most collectors. Style numbers are from the Toledano Guide (or based on the Guide when the style isn't already identified). Dates are generally accurate but occasional examples exist of older dust jacket styles used years after you'd expect.

For non-giant DJ backs, see Quick Guide to Regular Dust Jacket Backs 1917-1986.

An ISBN number at the bottom indicates a post-1970 printing.

A note about dates: There are two types of DJ dates:

1) The last date when the jacket type was used on a new title. These we know quite accurately, and list for each jacket type.
2) The last data a jacket type was used. This is always extending outward, and we do not track. For example, type l (el) was used well into the 1970s.