# Is "Eleanor and Franklin" by Joseph P. Lash a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Eleanor and Franklin by Joseph P. Lash (W. W. Norton, 1971) is identified by: Single thick volume, cloth-backed boards, illustrated, in a priced first-state dust jacket. US Norton (New York) is the true first, 1971.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Single thick volume, cloth-backed boards, illustrated, in a priced first-state dust jacket
- The Norton first printing carries its first-printing indicia on the copyright page
- Publisher imprint reads W. W. Norton
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Joseph P. Lash |
| Publisher | W. W. Norton |
| Year | 1971 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Single thick volume, cloth-backed boards, illustrated, in a priced first-state dust jacket |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Single thick volume, cloth-backed boards, illustrated, in a priced first-state dust jacket. The Norton first printing carries its first-printing indicia on the copyright page.

## Is this the true first?
US Norton (New York) is the true first, 1971. Awarded the 1972 Pulitzer Prize for Biography and the 1972 National Book Award in Biography.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club issues lack the priced jacket and are typically thinner-feeling with blind-stamped boards. Confirm the publisher's first-printing indicia on the copyright page rather than relying on the jacket alone.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Eleanor and Franklin* by Joseph P. Lash a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/eleanor-and-franklin
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.