# Is "Desolation Angels" by Jack Kerouac a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Desolation Angels by Jack Kerouac (Coward-McCann, 1965) is identified by: First US edition, cloth in dust jacket, with an introduction by Seymour Krim. Coward-McCann US (1965) is the true first; André Deutsch issued the first UK edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First US edition, cloth in dust jacket, with an introduction by Seymour Krim
- Bound in red-orange cloth lettered in gilt on the spine
- First printing identified on the copyright page; the pictorial first-issue jacket carries a design by Sam Salant and should retain its printed front-flap price
- The first printing was a comparatively small run
- Publisher imprint reads Coward-McCann
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Jack Kerouac |
| Publisher | Coward-McCann |
| Year | 1965 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Poetry |
| Key point | First US edition, cloth in dust jacket, with an introduction by Seymour Krim |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First US edition, cloth in dust jacket, with an introduction by Seymour Krim. Bound in red-orange cloth lettered in gilt on the spine. First printing identified on the copyright page; the pictorial first-issue jacket carries a design by Sam Salant and should retain its printed front-flap price. The first printing was a comparatively small run.

## Is this the true first?
Coward-McCann US (1965) is the true first; André Deutsch issued the first UK edition. Verify the first-printing copyright page and the price-present pictorial jacket.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Distinguish from later printings via copyright-page statements; a price-present first-issue jacket is required for a true first in jacket.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Desolation Angels* by Jack Kerouac a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/desolation-angels
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.