# Is "Cosmopolitan Greetings: Poems 1986-1992" by Allen Ginsberg a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Cosmopolitan Greetings: Poems 1986-1992 by Allen Ginsberg (HarperCollins, 1994) is identified by: Quarter black cloth over black paper boards, purple spine lettering, gold decoration on the front board, in dust jacket; the first states 'First Edition' with a number line ending in 1. Trade first is the 1994 HarperCollins hardcover.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Quarter black cloth over black paper boards, purple spine lettering, gold decoration on the front board, in dust jacket; the first states 'First Edition' with a number line ending in 1
- Publisher imprint reads HarperCollins
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Allen Ginsberg |
| Publisher | HarperCollins |
| Year | 1994 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Quarter black cloth over black paper boards, purple spine lettering, gold decoration on… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Quarter black cloth over black paper boards, purple spine lettering, gold decoration on the front board, in dust jacket; the first states 'First Edition' with a number line ending in 1.

## Is this the true first?
Trade first is the 1994 HarperCollins hardcover.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Cosmopolitan Greetings: Poems 1986-1992* by Allen Ginsberg a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/cosmopolitan-greetings-poems-1986-1992
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.