# Is "City of Glass" by Paul Auster a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of City of Glass by Paul Auster (Sun & Moon Press, 1985) is identified by: Hardcover bound in dark blue cloth with gilt spine lettering, issued in a printed dust jacket; "First Edition" stated on the copyright page with a full descending number line. The US Sun & Moon Press (Los Angeles) printing is the true first; it precedes the collected New York Trilogy and any UK appearance.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Hardcover bound in dark blue cloth with gilt spine lettering, issued in a printed dust jacket; "First Edition" stated on the copyright page with a full descending number line
- Issued as New American Fiction #4
- The first-state dust jacket lacks the publisher's imprint at the foot of the spine
- Sun & Moon later produced small tipped-on/loosely-inserted paper imprints to remedy the omission, and a third-state jacket has the imprint printed in with added flap logos
- A limited issue of 26 lettered copies signed by the author also exists
- Publisher imprint reads Sun & Moon Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Paul Auster |
| Publisher | Sun & Moon Press |
| Year | 1985 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Hardcover bound in dark blue cloth with gilt spine lettering, issued in a printed dust jacket; "First Edition" stated on the copyright page… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Hardcover bound in dark blue cloth with gilt spine lettering, issued in a printed dust jacket; "First Edition" stated on the copyright page with a full descending number line. Issued as New American Fiction #4. The first-state dust jacket lacks the publisher's imprint at the foot of the spine; Sun & Moon later produced small tipped-on/loosely-inserted paper imprints to remedy the omission, and a third-state jacket has the imprint printed in with added flap logos. A limited issue of 26 lettered copies signed by the author also exists.

## Is this the true first?
The US Sun & Moon Press (Los Angeles) printing is the true first; it precedes the collected New York Trilogy and any UK appearance. The 26 signed lettered copies are the priority issue.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition; the later one-volume New York Trilogy collections (Penguin/Faber) are not the first appearance. The spine-imprint jacket states are the key collecting nuance.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *City of Glass* by Paul Auster a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/city-of-glass
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.