# Is "A Wild Sheep Chase" by Haruki Murakami a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of A Wild Sheep Chase by Haruki Murakami (Kodansha International, 1989) is identified by: English true first is the Kodansha International 1989 hardcover, translated by Alfred Birnbaum (ISBN-10 0-87011-905-2 / ISBN-13 978-0-87011-905-7), in purple paper-covered boards with quarter green cloth and silver spine lettering, in the blue dust jacket with the ram design by Shigeo Okamoto (price present at the flap). The Kodansha International edition of 1989 (New York/Tokyo) is the true first edition in English; the UK edition (Hamish Hamilton, London) followed in 1990.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- English true first is the Kodansha International 1989 hardcover, translated by Alfred Birnbaum (ISBN-10 0-87011-905-2 / ISBN-13 978-0-87011-905-7), in purple paper-covered boards with quarter green cloth and silver spine lettering, in the blue dust jacket with the ram design by Shigeo Okamoto (price present at the flap)
- It is the first Murakami novel published in English for the trade and the earliest collectible Murakami in English
- Publisher imprint reads Kodansha International
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Haruki Murakami |
| Publisher | Kodansha International |
| Year | 1989 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | English true first is the Kodansha International 1989 hardcover, translated by Alfred Birnbaum (ISBN-10 0-87011-905-2 / ISBN-13… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
English true first is the Kodansha International 1989 hardcover, translated by Alfred Birnbaum (ISBN-10 0-87011-905-2 / ISBN-13 978-0-87011-905-7), in purple paper-covered boards with quarter green cloth and silver spine lettering, in the blue dust jacket with the ram design by Shigeo Okamoto (price present at the flap). It is the first Murakami novel published in English for the trade and the earliest collectible Murakami in English.

## Is this the true first?
The Kodansha International edition of 1989 (New York/Tokyo) is the true first edition in English; the UK edition (Hamish Hamilton, London) followed in 1990. The Japanese original, Hitsuji o meguru boken, was published in 1982. It is the third novel of the 'Trilogy of the Rat' but the first to be translated into English for the trade.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Plume and Vintage International paperbacks, and later reissues, are reprints. Confirm the Kodansha quarter-green-cloth binding over purple boards, the Shigeo Okamoto ram-design jacket, the 1989 date, and the ISBN-10 0-87011-905-2 (ISBN-13 978-0-87011-905-7).

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *A Wild Sheep Chase* by Haruki Murakami a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/a-wild-sheep-chase
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.