# Is "Burmese Days" by George Orwell a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Burmese Days by George Orwell (Harper & Brothers, 1934) is identified by: New York: Harper & Brothers, 1934. Unusually for Orwell, the US Harper edition (October 1934) is the true first, not the UK.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- New York: Harper & Brothers, 1934
- Published 25 October 1934 in an edition of about 2,000 copies
- This US edition is the true first; for libel reasons Gollancz declined the manuscript and the English edition was delayed and altered
- Publisher imprint reads Harper & Brothers
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | George Orwell |
| Publisher | Harper & Brothers |
| Year | 1934 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | New York: Harper & Brothers, 1934 |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
New York: Harper & Brothers, 1934. Published 25 October 1934 in an edition of about 2,000 copies. This US edition is the true first; for libel reasons Gollancz declined the manuscript and the English edition was delayed and altered.

## Is this the true first?
Unusually for Orwell, the US Harper edition (October 1934) is the true first, not the UK. Orwell himself called the Harper edition 'the true first edition'. The Gollancz English edition (24 June 1935) is textually revised, with character and place names altered to avoid libel, and is a 'first English edition' but second overall.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The two editions differ in text, not merely imprint; the 1935 English first is collectible but does not precede the US edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Burmese Days* by George Orwell a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/burmese-days
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.