# Is "Geek Love" by Katherine Dunn a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Geek Love by Katherine Dunn (Alfred A. Knopf, 1989) is identified by: Knopf (New York, 1989) hardcover is the true first. US Knopf 1989 is the true first; the first UK edition (Hamish Hamilton, London, 1989) appeared the same year with a different, scarcer jacket and is the later issue.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The US Alfred A. Knopf (New York, 1989) hardcover is the true first
- The first printing states 'First Edition' on the copyright page with the number line reading 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
- It is bound quarter in dark blue cloth over blue paper-covered boards
- 347 pp., large octavo
- Chip Kidd's neon-orange dust jacket is a priced jacket with the price present at the front flap; the jacket spine bears Kidd's five-legged alteration of the Knopf borzoi — a design curiosity present on the standard jacket, NOT a reliable printing point
- Orange spine fading is common and is a condition issue, not an edition point
- Publisher imprint reads Alfred A. Knopf

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Katherine Dunn |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Year | 1989 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The US Alfred A. Knopf (New York, 1989) hardcover is the true first |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
The US Alfred A. Knopf (New York, 1989) hardcover is the true first. The first printing states 'First Edition' on the copyright page with the number line reading 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2. It is bound quarter in dark blue cloth over blue paper-covered boards; 347 pp., large octavo. Chip Kidd's neon-orange dust jacket is a priced jacket with the price present at the front flap; the jacket spine bears Kidd's five-legged alteration of the Knopf borzoi — a design curiosity present on the standard jacket, NOT a reliable printing point. Orange spine fading is common and is a condition issue, not an edition point.

## Is this the true first?
US Knopf 1989 is the true first; the first UK edition (Hamish Hamilton, London, 1989) appeared the same year with a different, scarcer jacket and is the later issue. Census precedence confirmed.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The Warner (US) and Abacus (UK) paperbacks from 1990 onward are later 'first thus' issues; a true first shows the Knopf number line ending...10 8 6 4 2 with the price present at the jacket flap.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Geek Love* by Katherine Dunn a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/geek-love
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.