# Is "Drown" by Junot Díaz a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Drown by Junot Díaz (Riverhead Books, 1996) is identified by: First edition so stated with a full number line down to 1. The US Riverhead first precedes the UK Faber edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition so stated with a full number line down to 1
- Bound in brown paper over boards with the spine backed in red and lettered in silver; dust jacket carries the printed price
- Many first-printing copies also originally contained a publisher's erratum slip, frequently absent now
- Díaz's debut story collection
- Publisher imprint reads Riverhead Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Junot Díaz |
| Publisher | Riverhead Books |
| Year | 1996 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition so stated with a full number line down to 1 |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First edition so stated with a full number line down to 1. Bound in brown paper over boards with the spine backed in red and lettered in silver; dust jacket carries the printed price. Many first-printing copies also originally contained a publisher's erratum slip, frequently absent now. Díaz's debut story collection.

## Is this the true first?
The US Riverhead first precedes the UK Faber edition. The hardcover first is scarcer than the simultaneous trade paperback.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition; reprints appear as later trade paperbacks under different ISBNs.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Drown* by Junot Díaz a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/drown
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.