# Is "Desperation" by Stephen King a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Desperation by Stephen King (Viking, 1996) is identified by: Viking trade first, with a complete number line present on the copyright page and the printed price present on the front jacket flap. US Viking is the true first; the UK Hodder & Stoughton edition follows.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Viking trade first, with a complete number line present on the copyright page and the printed price present on the front jacket flap
- The binding is teal paper-covered boards with a tan cloth spine, King's initials (SK) blind-stamped into the front board and the spine lettered in metallic red; the trade first has vivid red endpapers
- First-state jackets are coded 0996 on the flap
- Issued as a deliberate companion to Richard Bachman's 'The Regulators,' both published the same day, September 24, 1996
- Publisher imprint reads Viking
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Stephen King |
| Publisher | Viking |
| Year | 1996 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Viking trade first, with a complete number line present on the copyright page and the printed price present on the front jacket flap |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Viking trade first, with a complete number line present on the copyright page and the printed price present on the front jacket flap. The binding is teal paper-covered boards with a tan cloth spine, King's initials (SK) blind-stamped into the front board and the spine lettered in metallic red; the trade first has vivid red endpapers. First-state jackets are coded 0996 on the flap. Issued as a deliberate companion to Richard Bachman's 'The Regulators,' both published the same day, September 24, 1996.

## Is this the true first?
US Viking is the true first; the UK Hodder & Stoughton edition follows.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The Book-of-the-Month Club edition lacks the number line and prints no price on the jacket flap, and has plain white endpapers where the trade first's are vivid red; it is also typically slightly smaller and on lighter boards.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Desperation* by Stephen King a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/desperation
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.