# Is "Cup of Gold" by John Steinbeck a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Cup of Gold by John Steinbeck (Robert M. McBride & Company, New York, 1929) is identified by: Steinbeck's first book, published 1929 in 1,537 copies (Goldstone & Payne A1a). True US first; precedes the UK Heinemann edition of 1937.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Steinbeck's first book, published 1929 in 1,537 copies (Goldstone & Payne A1a)
- First-issue binding: yellow cloth, titled in black on front cover and spine, with the top edge stained blue and the final blank leaf present
- The copyright page carries no later-printing notice
- Issued in the pictorial pirate dust jacket illustrated by Mahlon Blaine with the printed price
- Publisher imprint reads Robert M. McBride & Company, New York
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John Steinbeck |
| Publisher | Robert M. McBride & Company, New York |
| Year | 1929 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Steinbeck's first book, published 1929 in 1,537 copies (Goldstone & Payne A1a) |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Steinbeck's first book, published 1929 in 1,537 copies (Goldstone & Payne A1a). First-issue binding: yellow cloth, titled in black on front cover and spine, with the top edge stained blue and the final blank leaf present. The copyright page carries no later-printing notice. Issued in the pictorial pirate dust jacket illustrated by Mahlon Blaine with the printed price.

## Is this the true first?
True US first; precedes the UK Heinemann edition of 1937. The McBride printing is the genuine first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition. A distinct 1936 Covici-Friede reissue exists with a new tipped-in title page, a Lewis Gannett introduction, and its own binding (recorded in maroon and later blue cloth); it is a separate, later edition, not a state of the McBride first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Cup of Gold* by John Steinbeck a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/cup-of-gold
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.