# Is "God's Little Acre" by Erskine Caldwell a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of God's Little Acre by Erskine Caldwell (The Viking Press, 1933) is identified by: First printing; black cloth lettered and decorated in orange/yellow and green, top edge stained pink, fore edge untrimmed; no statement of later printing on the copyright page. US first; UK Secker edition followed in 1933.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing; black cloth lettered and decorated in orange/yellow and green, top edge stained pink, fore edge untrimmed; no statement of later printing on the copyright page
- Dust jacket priced at two-fifty
- Publisher imprint reads The Viking Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Erskine Caldwell |
| Publisher | The Viking Press |
| Year | 1933 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing; black cloth lettered and decorated in orange/yellow and green, top edge stained pink, fore edge untrimmed; no statement of… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First printing; black cloth lettered and decorated in orange/yellow and green, top edge stained pink, fore edge untrimmed; no statement of later printing on the copyright page. Dust jacket priced at two-fifty.

## Is this the true first?
US first; UK Secker edition followed in 1933. His best-selling work.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Viking printings are noted on the copyright page; a Modern Library reprint and other later editions exist.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *God's Little Acre* by Erskine Caldwell a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/gods-little-acre
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.