# Is "Conjure: Selected Poems, 1963-1970" by Ishmael Reed a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Conjure: Selected Poems, 1963-1970 by Ishmael Reed (University of Massachusetts Press, 1972) is identified by: First printing, 1972, Reed's first collection of poetry, collating xii, 83 pages. The true first is the 1972 University of Massachusetts Press edition (Amherst), in both the cloth and the wrappers issues; there is no earlier printing.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing, 1972, Reed's first collection of poetry, collating xii, 83 pages
- Issued simultaneously in cloth and in illustrated wrappers: the hardcover is bound in red slick cloth-covered boards lettered in white, and the wrappers issue is printed in color
- The hardcover issue is the scarcer of the two
- Publisher imprint reads University of Massachusetts Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Ishmael Reed |
| Publisher | University of Massachusetts Press |
| Year | 1972 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing, 1972, Reed's first collection of poetry, collating xii, 83 pages |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First printing, 1972, Reed's first collection of poetry, collating xii, 83 pages. Issued simultaneously in cloth and in illustrated wrappers: the hardcover is bound in red slick cloth-covered boards lettered in white, and the wrappers issue is printed in color. The hardcover issue is the scarcer of the two.

## Is this the true first?
The true first is the 1972 University of Massachusetts Press edition (Amherst), in both the cloth and the wrappers issues; there is no earlier printing.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
None notable; the red cloth with white lettering (hardcover) or color-illustrated wrappers identify the 1972 first printing.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Conjure: Selected Poems, 1963-1970* by Ishmael Reed a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/conjure-selected-poems-1963-1970
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.