# Is "Day by Day" by Robert Lowell a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Day by Day by Robert Lowell (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1977) is identified by: Lowell's last collection, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry. US FSG (1977) is the true first; the Faber & Faber UK edition follows in 1978.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Lowell's last collection, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry
- First edition, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, red cloth with gold spine lettering and dust jacket
- 137 pages
- First printing carries the 'First printing, 1977' statement on the copyright page
- Publisher imprint reads Farrar, Straus & Giroux
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Robert Lowell |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus & Giroux |
| Year | 1977 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Lowell's last collection, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Lowell's last collection, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry. First edition, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, red cloth with gold spine lettering and dust jacket; 137 pages. First printing carries the 'First printing, 1977' statement on the copyright page.

## Is this the true first?
US FSG (1977) is the true first; the Faber & Faber UK edition follows in 1978.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Day by Day* by Robert Lowell a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/day-by-day
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.