# Is "Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame: Selected Poems 1955-1973" by Charles Bukowski a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame: Selected Poems 1955-1973 by Charles Bukowski (Black Sparrow Press, 1974) is identified by: Issued in trade paperback wrappers, a signed/numbered hardcover limited of 300 copies (quarter cloth over paper-covered boards, spine label, acetate jacket), and 50 numbered copies handbound with an original drawing by Bukowski. True first is the 1974 Black Sparrow issue; the 300 signed/numbered hardcovers and 50 artwork copies are the limited states.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Issued in trade paperback wrappers, a signed/numbered hardcover limited of 300 copies (quarter cloth over paper-covered boards, spine label, acetate jacket), and 50 numbered copies handbound with an original drawing by Bukowski
- Color-printed title page marks the first printing; no statement of later printings
- Publisher imprint reads Black Sparrow Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Charles Bukowski |
| Publisher | Black Sparrow Press |
| Year | 1974 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Issued in trade paperback wrappers, a signed/numbered hardcover limited of 300 copies… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Issued in trade paperback wrappers, a signed/numbered hardcover limited of 300 copies (quarter cloth over paper-covered boards, spine label, acetate jacket), and 50 numbered copies handbound with an original drawing by Bukowski. Color-printed title page marks the first printing; no statement of later printings.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1974 Black Sparrow issue; the 300 signed/numbered hardcovers and 50 artwork copies are the limited states. Note the book's title page is variously subtitled 1955-1973 and 1955-1974.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame: Selected Poems 1955-1973* by Charles Bukowski a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/burning-in-water-drowning-in-flame-selected-poems-1955-1973
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.