# Is "Balthazar" by Lawrence Durrell a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Balthazar by Lawrence Durrell (Faber & Faber, 1958) is identified by: First edition, first impression, Faber and Faber, London, 1958. UK Faber 1958 is the true first; the US E.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, first impression, Faber and Faber, London, 1958
- Volume two of The Alexandria Quartet
- Issued in cloth with a dust jacket with its printed price on the unclipped flap
- The UK Faber printing precedes the US E. P. Dutton edition of the same year
- Publisher imprint reads Faber & Faber
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Lawrence Durrell |
| Publisher | Faber & Faber |
| Year | 1958 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, first impression, Faber and Faber, London, 1958 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition, first impression, Faber and Faber, London, 1958. Volume two of The Alexandria Quartet. Issued in cloth with a dust jacket with its printed price on the unclipped flap. The UK Faber printing precedes the US E. P. Dutton edition of the same year.

## Is this the true first?
UK Faber 1958 is the true first; the US E. P. Dutton edition also dated 1958 follows it.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club printings came later and are not the first edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Balthazar* by Lawrence Durrell a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/balthazar
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.