# Is "Devil on the Cross (Caitaani Mutharaba-Ini)" by Ngugi wa Thiong'o a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Devil on the Cross (Caitaani Mutharaba-Ini) by Ngugi wa Thiong'o (Heinemann, 1982) is identified by: First English-language edition, Heinemann Educational Books, African Writers Series number 200, London, 1982, translated from the Gikuyu by the author himself. Heinemann London 1982 is the first English-language edition, in the author's own translation.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First English-language edition, Heinemann Educational Books, African Writers Series number 200, London, 1982, translated from the Gikuyu by the author himself
- Issued in wrappers bearing the series number
- The novel was composed in Gikuyu while the author was imprisoned and is among the first modern novels written in that language
- Publisher imprint reads Heinemann
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Ngugi wa Thiong'o |
| Publisher | Heinemann |
| Year | 1982 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First English-language edition, Heinemann Educational Books, African Writers Series number 200, London, 1982, translated from the Gikuyu by… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First English-language edition, Heinemann Educational Books, African Writers Series number 200, London, 1982, translated from the Gikuyu by the author himself. Issued in wrappers bearing the series number. The novel was composed in Gikuyu while the author was imprisoned and is among the first modern novels written in that language.

## Is this the true first?
Heinemann London 1982 is the first English-language edition, in the author's own translation. The Gikuyu original, Caitaani Mutharaba-Ini, appeared in 1980. As the English-language first it is a 'first thus' relative to the Gikuyu original.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Heinemann and Penguin paperbacks are reprints relative to the 1982 first English-language edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Devil on the Cross (Caitaani Mutharaba-Ini)* by Ngugi wa Thiong'o a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/devil-on-the-cross-caitaani-mutharaba-ini
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.