2 Philip Levine first editions are documented on this shelf, from What Work Is (1991) to The Simple Truth (1994) across 2 different publishers. Each linked guide gives the points of issue that separate a true first printing of that Philip Levine title from later printings and book-club copies — the publisher and year to expect, the number-line or edition-statement conventions, and the tells that show up in online listings.

Identification only, per the house rule: no prices and no appraisals here. Checking a Philip Levine copy in hand? Type the title into the First-Edition Checker or photograph the copyright page with Snap & Sort.

What Work Is — 1991 · Alfred A. KnopfFirst edition so stated on the copyright page with a full number line descending to 1; the true first printing also shows a dating code (in the form '5/91') on the rear jacket flap consistent with the 1991 publication. Cloth-and-boards binding in dust jacket with the original printed price on the flap. Confirm the number line reaches 1. US Knopf 1991 is the true first. The collection won the 1991 National Book Award for Poetry, awarded after publication. Signed copies exist. A reduced number line that does not reach 1 indicates a later printing.
The Simple Truth — 1994 · Alfred A. KnopfWon the 1995 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. The true first is the Knopf (Borzoi) hardcover of 1994, identified by 'FIRST EDITION' stated on the copyright page together with the Borzoi colophon, issued in a dust jacket. US Knopf (1994) is the true first. No book-club edition noted. Later printings remove the 'FIRST EDITION' statement.

More Poetry, Beat & Drama shelves: Richard Wilbur, Robert Browning, Robert Hass, Sam Shepard, Samuel Beckett, Seamus Heaney.

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