Mario Vargas Llosa First Editions

• The Time of the Hero — 1966 · Grove Press, New YorkFirst English edition. Grove Press, New York, 1966, cloth in dust jacket, translated by Lysander Kemp. Translation of 'La ciudad y los perros.' This was Vargas Llosa's first book translated into English. First American edition, first printing. True first is the Spanish 'La ciudad y los perros' (Seix Barral, Barcelona, 1963). The 1966 Grove Press is the first English edition; it precedes the UK Jonathan Cape edition, which appeared in 1967, so the US Grove edition is unambiguously the first English. The Grove Evergreen paperback is not the cloth first.
• The Green House — 1968 · Harper & Row, New YorkFirst American edition, first printing. Harper & Row, New York and Evanston, 1968, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page (some copies carry the publisher's code 'L-S' beneath it, denoting November 1968); green cloth in the original dust jacket designed by Guy Fleming, the jacket retaining its printed price on the front flap. Translated by Gregory Rabassa. True first of the work is the Spanish 'La casa verde' (Editorial Seix Barral, Barcelona, Biblioteca Formentor, 1966, cover by Antoni Tapies, 430 pp). The 1968 Harper & Row is the first English edition; it precedes the UK Cape edition (1969). Avon paperback and later reprints are not firsts; the UK Cape edition is a separate later first. Confirm the first printing by the 'First Edition' statement and the intact priced Guy Fleming jacket.
• Conversation in the Cathedral — 1975 · Harper & Row, New YorkFirst English edition. Harper & Row, New York, 1975, black cloth boards with gilt lettering, 601 pages, translated by Gregory Rabassa. Translation of 'Conversacion en La Catedral.' First American edition, first printing. True first of the work is the Spanish 'Conversacion en La Catedral' (Seix Barral, Barcelona, 1969). The 1975 Harper & Row is the first English edition. Later paperbacks (Avon, Farrar) are reprints, not the cloth first.
• Captain Pantoja and the Special Service — 1978 · Harper & RowFirst US edition published by Harper & Row, New York, 1978, in hardcover (ISBN 0-06-014494-7), roughly 244 pages, in cloth-covered boards. Translated from the Spanish by Gregory Kolovakos and Ronald Christ. The first-state dust jacket carries jacket art by Anita Lovitt and, on the front flap, its original printed price (a price-clipped example is acceptable but the price should originally have been present).…. First English translation of Pantaleon y las visitadoras (Barcelona, 1973). The true first UK edition was published by Jonathan Cape, London, in 1978, also using the Kolovakos and Christ translation and the Anita Lovitt jacket art; the Faber & Faber issue is a later (1987) softcover reissue, not the first UK printing. US and UK firsts both appeared in 1978. Later reprint and paperback editions exist; identify the first by the 1978 Harper & Row imprint and the 0-06-014494-7 ISBN. No distinctive book-club point is reliably documented for this title.
• Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter — 1982 · Farrar, Straus & Giroux, New YorkFirst English edition. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 1982, cloth in dust jacket, 374 pages, translated by Helen R. Lane. Translation of 'La tia Julia y el escribidor.' First US edition, first printing. True first of the work is the Spanish 'La tia Julia y el escribidor' (Seix Barral, Barcelona, 1977). The 1982 FSG is the first English edition; the UK Faber edition followed. Later FSG and Penguin paperbacks are reprints.
• The War of the End of the World — 1984 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst US edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 1984, with 'First edition' stated on the copyright page and translated by Helen R. Lane; the dust jacket, designed by the Paul Bacon Studio, should retain its printed price on the front flap. A separate signed, numbered limited issue also exists. First English translation of La guerra del fin del mundo (Seix Barral, 1981). The FSG 1984 edition precedes the first UK edition (Faber and Faber, London, 1985), so it is the true first in English. No notable book-club edition point documented; the stated 'First edition' plus the priced Paul Bacon Studio jacket identify the true first. The 1985 Faber edition is a separate later English first.
• The Perpetual Orgy: Flaubert and Madame Bovary — 1986 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst US edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 1986, hardcover, 240 pages; translated from the Spanish by Helen R. Lane, with jacket design by Cynthia Krupat. Issued as a hardcover original only; the priced jacket should carry the printed price on the flap. First English-language appearance of this book-length work of literary criticism. First English translation of La orgía perpetua: Flaubert y Madame Bovary (1975), a critical essay; the 1986 FSG hardcover precedes all subsequent English editions. No notable book-club edition point documented; the 1986 FSG hardcover is the first English/US appearance, issued as a hardcover original.
• The Real Life of Alejandro Mayta — 1986 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst US edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 1986, in cloth-backed boards with a printed dust jacket; translated by Alfred Mac Adam. The copyright page states 'First edition' and carries a descending number line whose lowest number (1) is present on a first printing; the priced first-state jacket should retain its printed price at the front flap. First English-language edition, translating Historia de Mayta (Seix Barral, Barcelona, 1984). The Farrar, Straus and Giroux edition is the true first in English; the Faber & Faber UK edition followed and does not precede the US printing. No notable book-club edition point is documented; the stated 'First edition' with the complete number line ending in 1 identifies the true first printing. A book-club copy would carry an unpriced jacket and typically a blindstamp to the rear board.
• Who Killed Palomino Molero? — 1987 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst US edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 1987, with 'First edition' stated on the copyright page; translated from the Spanish by Alfred Mac Adam. An octavo of 151 pages in a gray-spined binding with yellow and black spine lettering. The first-issue dust jacket carries a design by Honi Werner and an author photograph by Jerry Bauer, both credited to 1987, and should retain its original printed…. First English translation of ¿Quién mató a Palomino Molero? (1986); the FSG US edition of 1987 precedes the Faber & Faber UK edition, which did not appear until 1988. No notable book-club edition point documented; the stated 'First edition' on the copyright page identifies the true first, and a second printing exists that retains the 'First edition' words but adds a lower number to the printing line.
• The Storyteller — 1989 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst US edition, first printing, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 1989, with 'First edition' stated on the copyright page; translated from the Spanish by Helen Lane, in the priced dust jacket (printed price present on the front flap, unclipped). Jacket art by Mark Sturgeon with jacket design by Cynthia Krupat. First English-language edition of El hablador (Seix Barral, 1987). The US FSG edition of 1989 precedes the UK Faber & Faber hardcover (1990, ISBN 0571152082, jacket by Andrzej Klimowski), so the FSG printing is the true first in English. No notable book-club edition point documented; the stated 'First edition' plus the printed jacket price identify the true first.
• In Praise of the Stepmother — 1990 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst US edition, Farrar Straus and Giroux, 1990, stating 'First edition' on the copyright page; translated by Helen R. Lane; illustrated with color plate reproductions of paintings (ISBN 0374175837). First edition in English of Elogio de la madrastra (Spanish original 1988). The FSG hardcover is the true first English-language edition. No notable book club edition affecting the first-printing identification.
• A Fish in the Water: A Memoir — 1994 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst American edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 1994, stating 'First edition' on the copyright page; translated by Helen Lane (ISBN 0374155097). Octavo, [x], 532, [2] pages, bound in black cloth-backed boards. Issued in a photo-illustrated dust jacket that should retain the printed price at the lower flap. First edition in English of the memoir El pez en el agua (Spanish original, Editorial Seix Barral, 1993). A UK edition (Faber and Faber) also appeared; the FSG issue is the American first, identified by the stated 'First edition' line. No notable book club edition affecting the first-printing identification.
• Death in the Andes — 1996 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst US edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 1996, stating 'First edition' on the copyright page; translated from the Spanish by Edith Grossman (ISBN 0374140014). A hardcover of 276 pages bound in black and gray cloth lettered in black. The first-issue dust jacket was designed by Michael Ian Kaye and carries the author photograph by Jerry Bauer on the rear panel; the jacket should retain its printed…. First edition in English of Lituma en los Andes (Spanish original 1993, winner of the Premio Planeta). The FSG hardcover is the first appearance in English; a Faber and Faber UK edition also appeared in 1996, but the FSG issue is the true first in English. No notable book club edition affecting the first-printing identification. The later St. Martin's/Picador trade paperback (ISBN 0312427255) is a reprint and not to be confused with the FSG hardcover first.
• The Notebooks of Don Rigoberto — 1998 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst American edition, first printing, Farrar Straus and Giroux, 1998, stating 'First edition'; translated by Edith Grossman; black cloth spine over blue paper-covered boards, illustrated (ISBN 0374223270). First edition in English of Los cuadernos de don Rigoberto (Spanish original 1997). The FSG hardcover is the true first English-language edition. A book club edition of this title exists; distinguish the trade first by the FSG imprint, full number line/'First edition' statement, and absence of a book-club blind stamp on the rear board.
• The Feast of the Goat — 2001 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst American edition, first printing, Farrar Straus and Giroux, 2001, stating 'First edition'; translated by Edith Grossman; yellow cloth spine, orange boards, author's initials embossed at top of front board (ISBN 0374154767). First edition in English of La Fiesta del Chivo (Spanish original 2000). The FSG hardcover is the first appearance in English. No notable book club edition affecting the first-printing identification.
• The Way to Paradise — 2003 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst US edition, first printing, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2003, stating 'First edition' on the copyright page; translated from the Spanish by Natasha Wimmer (ISBN 0374228035), 373 pages. The first-state dust jacket was designed by Kathleen DiGrado and carries jacket art reproducing a detail from Paul Gauguin's 'Manao tupapau (The Spirit of the Dead Watching)', 1892; a first-printing jacket retains the FSG…. First edition in English of El paraíso en la otra esquina (Spanish original, 2003). The FSG hardcover is the first appearance in English; the Faber and Faber UK edition followed. No notable book club edition affects the first-printing identification; confirm the stated 'First edition' line on the copyright page.
• The Bad Girl — 2007 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxFirst American edition, first printing, published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 2007, in octavo (276 pages), translated by Edith Grossman. The copyright page states 'First edition' with a number line descending to 1. The binding is red boards lettered in silver on the spine. The photographic dust jacket carries the image of the 'bad girl' on the front panel; a first-issue jacket should retain the…. First English translation of Travesuras de la nina mala (Alfaguara, Madrid, 2006). The US Farrar, Straus and Giroux edition and the UK Faber & Faber edition both appeared in 2007; the two were set from Grossman's translation and are distinguished by imprint, jacket design, and priced flap (dollars vs pounds). No notable book-club edition; identify the first by the FSG imprint, the stated 'First edition', the complete number line ending in 1, and the intact priced photographic jacket.
• The Dream of the Celt — 2012 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxUS Farrar, Straus and Giroux 2012 hardcover; the copyright page carries the stated 'First American edition' with a full number line terminating in 1 (FSG's standard first-printing convention). Translated by Edith Grossman. Issued in a pictorial dust jacket that should retain its printed cover price, unclipped. First English translation of El sueno del celta (Alfaguara, 2010). US FSG and UK Faber both 2012; the FSG printing states 'First American edition.'. No notable book-club edition; confirm the stated 'First American edition' line and a number line ending in 1.
• The Discreet Hero — 2015 · Farrar, Straus and GirouxUS Farrar, Straus and Giroux 2015 hardcover; the copyright page carries the stated 'First American edition' with a full number line terminating in 1 (FSG's standard first-printing convention). Translated by Edith Grossman. Issued in a pictorial dust jacket that should retain its printed cover price, unclipped. First English translation of El heroe discreto (Alfaguara, 2013). US FSG and UK Faber both 2015; the FSG printing states 'First American edition.'. No notable book-club edition; confirm the stated 'First American edition' line and a number line ending in 1.

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