# Is "Bloodchild and Other Stories" by Octavia E. Butler a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Bloodchild and Other Stories by Octavia E. Butler (Four Walls Eight Windows, 1995) is identified by: Four Walls Eight Windows hardcover, first edition/first printing; priced jacket. US Four Walls Eight Windows hardcover (1995) is the true first collection; expanded second edition (2005) adds stories.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Four Walls Eight Windows hardcover, first edition/first printing; priced jacket
- Title story won the Hugo and Nebula Awards for best novelette; also includes the Hugo-winning 'Speech Sounds'
- Publisher imprint reads Four Walls Eight Windows
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Octavia E. Butler |
| Publisher | Four Walls Eight Windows |
| Year | 1995 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Four Walls Eight Windows hardcover, first edition/first printing; priced jacket |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Story collection. Four Walls Eight Windows hardcover, first edition/first printing; priced jacket. Title story won the Hugo and Nebula Awards for best novelette; also includes the Hugo-winning 'Speech Sounds'.

## Is this the true first?
US Four Walls Eight Windows hardcover (1995) is the true first collection; expanded second edition (2005) adds stories.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
None notable.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Bloodchild and Other Stories* by Octavia E. Butler a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/bloodchild-and-other-stories
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.