# Is "I Can Draw It Myself" by Dr. Seuss a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of I Can Draw It Myself by Dr. Seuss (Random House, 1970) is identified by: Random House (Beginner Books), 1970. US first (Random House).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Random House (Beginner Books), 1970
- The first issue is an oversized draw-in activity book (about 16 by 12 inches) with a plastic comb binding running along the top edge so the pages flip up, and it has no title page; it was NOT issued in a dust jacket
- Later reissues revert to the standard smaller hardcover format bound at the left edge, so the oversized comb-bound format is itself the primary first-issue point
- An unmarked interior is preferred
- Publisher imprint reads Random House
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Dr. Seuss |
| Publisher | Random House |
| Year | 1970 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | Random House (Beginner Books), 1970 |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Random House (Beginner Books), 1970. The first issue is an oversized draw-in activity book (about 16 by 12 inches) with a plastic comb binding running along the top edge so the pages flip up, and it has no title page; it was NOT issued in a dust jacket. Later reissues revert to the standard smaller hardcover format bound at the left edge, so the oversized comb-bound format is itself the primary first-issue point. An unmarked interior is preferred.

## Is this the true first?
US first (Random House). No competing UK or Canadian true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later editions adopt the conventional left-bound hardcover format; those are not the true first issue.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *I Can Draw It Myself* by Dr. Seuss a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/i-can-draw-it-myself
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.