# Is "Hymns to St. Geryon and Other Poems" by Michael McClure a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Hymns to St. Geryon and Other Poems by Michael McClure (The Auerhahn Press, 1959) is identified by: Auerhahn Press, San Francisco, 1959. This is the first edition of this title, but it is McClure's second book, not his first: 'Passage' (Jargon, 1956) precedes it.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Auerhahn Press, San Francisco, 1959
- Printed wrappers, hand-sewn, printed by Dave Haselwood, with a cover illustration by McClure
- First edition thus, no later-printing statement
- Publisher imprint reads The Auerhahn Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Michael McClure |
| Publisher | The Auerhahn Press |
| Year | 1959 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Auerhahn Press, San Francisco, 1959 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Auerhahn Press, San Francisco, 1959. Printed wrappers, hand-sewn, printed by Dave Haselwood, with a cover illustration by McClure. First edition thus, no later-printing statement.

## Is this the true first?
This is the first edition of this title, but it is McClure's second book, not his first: 'Passage' (Jargon, 1956) precedes it. The prior claim that this is McClure's first full book is incorrect.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Hymns to St. Geryon and Other Poems* by Michael McClure a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/hymns-to-st-geryon-and-other-poems
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.