# Is "Harriet the Spy" by Louise Fitzhugh a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh (Harper & Row, 1964) is identified by: First edition: Harper & Row, 1964, in pictorial boards using Fitzhugh's own artwork, with no later-printing statement on the copyright page per Harper's convention. US Harper & Row (1964) is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition: Harper & Row, 1964, in pictorial boards using Fitzhugh's own artwork, with no later-printing statement on the copyright page per Harper's convention
- First-issue dust jacket retains its printed front-flap price and carries the Harper date code
- at the foot of the front flap; the jacket art is Fitzhugh's own
- The first-issue jacket rear panel does NOT advertise The Long Secret; a distinct later jacket state adds The Long Secret (published October 1965) to the rear panel, so its absence is a first-state point
- Publisher imprint reads Harper & Row
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Louise Fitzhugh |
| Publisher | Harper & Row |
| Year | 1964 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | First edition: Harper & Row, 1964, in pictorial boards using Fitzhugh's own artwork, with no later-printing statement on the copyright page… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition: Harper & Row, 1964, in pictorial boards using Fitzhugh's own artwork, with no later-printing statement on the copyright page per Harper's convention. First-issue dust jacket retains its printed front-flap price and carries the Harper date code (1064) at the foot of the front flap; the jacket art is Fitzhugh's own. The first-issue jacket rear panel does NOT advertise The Long Secret; a distinct later jacket state adds The Long Secret (published October 1965) to the rear panel, so its absence is a first-state point.

## Is this the true first?
US Harper & Row (1964) is the true first. The identifying points are the absent later-printing line, the pictorial Fitzhugh boards, and the first-issue jacket with its 1064 date code, printed price, and a rear panel that does not yet list The Long Secret.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club editions omit the Harper code, lack the printed price, are reduced in size, and carry a board blind-stamp; a copy in a jacket advertising The Long Secret on the rear panel is a later jacket state rather than the first issue.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Harriet the Spy* by Louise Fitzhugh a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/harriet-the-spy
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.