# Is "Clock Without Hands" by Carson McCullers a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Clock Without Hands by Carson McCullers (Houghton Mifflin, 1961) is identified by: True first is Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1961, McCullers's last novel; [x]+241 pages, Ahearn APG 009a. US Houghton Mifflin (Boston) 1961 is the true first; the UK Cresset Press (London) edition also appeared in 1961 but is the later issue.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1961, McCullers's last novel; [x]+241 pages, Ahearn APG 009a
- Bound in red cloth stamped in gilt and black with a pale-yellow top-stain; the copyright page carries the 'First Printing' statement with the 1961 title-page date (later printings are stated 'Second Printing,' 'Third Printing,' etc.)
- Issued in the notoriously fragile die-cut dust jacket (with a circular cut-out); two jacket states are documented — a presumed first state with a rear-panel photograph of McCullers leaning forward and rear-flap blurbs led by Tennessee Williams, and a variant with her leaning back and blurbs led by Sitwell
- Priced jacket, price present at the flap
- Publisher imprint reads Houghton Mifflin
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Carson McCullers |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin |
| Year | 1961 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first is Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1961, McCullers's last novel; [x]+241 pages, Ahearn APG 009a |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
True first is Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1961, McCullers's last novel; [x]+241 pages, Ahearn APG 009a. Bound in red cloth stamped in gilt and black with a pale-yellow top-stain; the copyright page carries the 'First Printing' statement with the 1961 title-page date (later printings are stated 'Second Printing,' 'Third Printing,' etc.). Issued in the notoriously fragile die-cut dust jacket (with a circular cut-out); two jacket states are documented — a presumed first state with a rear-panel photograph of McCullers leaning forward and rear-flap blurbs led by Tennessee Williams, and a variant with her leaning back and blurbs led by Sitwell. Priced jacket, price present at the flap.

## Is this the true first?
US Houghton Mifflin (Boston) 1961 is the true first; the UK Cresset Press (London) edition also appeared in 1961 but is the later issue. Census precedence is correct.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Copies stated 'Second/Third Printing' on the copyright page are later printings within the first edition, not firsts. Book-club reprints where present lack the 'First Printing' statement and the priced die-cut jacket.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Clock Without Hands* by Carson McCullers a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/clock-without-hands
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.