# Is "A Theological Position" by Robert Coover a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of A Theological Position by Robert Coover (E.P. Dutton, 1972) is identified by: Dutton, New York, 1972, issued simultaneously in cloth-backed boards with a priced dust jacket and in trade wrappers. True first is the 1972 E.P.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, E.P. Dutton, New York, 1972, issued simultaneously in cloth-backed boards with a priced dust jacket and in trade wrappers
- Octavo (22 cm), 172 pages, collecting four plays: The Kid, Love Scene, Rip Awake, and A Theological Position
- The hardcover issue should retain its unclipped printed price to the jacket (present, though price-clipping alone does not demote a correct first)
- Publisher imprint reads E.P. Dutton
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Robert Coover |
| Publisher | E.P. Dutton |
| Year | 1972 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, E.P. Dutton, New York, 1972, issued simultaneously in cloth-backed boards with a priced dust jacket and in trade wrappers |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First edition, E.P. Dutton, New York, 1972, issued simultaneously in cloth-backed boards with a priced dust jacket and in trade wrappers. Octavo (22 cm), 172 pages, collecting four plays: The Kid, Love Scene, Rip Awake, and A Theological Position. The hardcover issue should retain its unclipped printed price to the jacket (present, though price-clipping alone does not demote a correct first).

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1972 E.P. Dutton edition, with the cloth (in jacket) and wrappers issues published together.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
None notable; distinguish the cloth issue in its priced jacket from the simultaneous trade-wrappers issue.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *A Theological Position* by Robert Coover a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/a-theological-position
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.