# Is "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius" by Dave Eggers a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers (Simon & Schuster, 2000) is identified by: Copyright page states First Edition with a full number line ending in 1; ISBN 0-684-86347-8. US Simon & Schuster is the true first, preceding the UK (Picador) edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Copyright page states First Edition with a full number line ending in 1
- ISBN 0-684-86347-8
- First printing carries the original unrevised front matter and the elaborate copyright-page and preface jokes/acknowledgments
- Binding is two-tone gray paper over boards with a maroon cloth-backed spine; the first-issue jacket carries the original printed price on the front flap and a scene from the text rather than conventional flap copy
- Publisher imprint reads Simon & Schuster
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Dave Eggers |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster |
| Year | 2000 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Copyright page states First Edition with a full number line ending in 1 |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Copyright page states First Edition with a full number line ending in 1; ISBN 0-684-86347-8. First printing carries the original unrevised front matter and the elaborate copyright-page and preface jokes/acknowledgments. Binding is two-tone gray paper over boards with a maroon cloth-backed spine; the first-issue jacket carries the original printed price on the front flap and a scene from the text rather than conventional flap copy.

## Is this the true first?
US Simon & Schuster is the true first, preceding the UK (Picador) edition. Eggers's debut; the original unrevised first-printing front matter and acknowledgments differ from those of later printings.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club hardcover of note; the principal tell is the original unrevised first-printing front matter plus the number line ending in 1 and the original printed-price jacket. Later printings altered the joke text and revised the front matter.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius* by Dave Eggers a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/a-heartbreaking-work-of-staggering-genius
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.