# Is "Annals of the Former World" by John McPhee a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Annals of the Former World by John McPhee (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1998) is identified by: Black cloth; copyright page states 'First edition, 1998'; first-state dust jacket with price present. US Farrar, Straus and Giroux true first of the combined omnibus.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Black cloth; copyright page states 'First edition, 1998'; first-state dust jacket with price present
- Omnibus collecting the geology tetralogy (Basin and Range
- In Suspect Terrain
- Rising from the Plains
- Assembling California) plus the new section Crossing the Craton
- Publisher imprint reads Farrar, Straus and Giroux
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John McPhee |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
| Year | 1998 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Black cloth; copyright page states 'First edition, 1998'; first-state dust jacket with price present |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Black cloth; copyright page states 'First edition, 1998'; first-state dust jacket with price present. Omnibus collecting the geology tetralogy (Basin and Range; In Suspect Terrain; Rising from the Plains; Assembling California) plus the new section Crossing the Craton.

## Is this the true first?
US Farrar, Straus and Giroux true first of the combined omnibus. Awarded the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction in 1999.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later printings add a printing/number statement to the copyright page; the true first carries only the stated 'First edition, 1998'.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Annals of the Former World* by John McPhee a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/annals-of-the-former-world
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.