# Is "In Watermelon Sugar" by Richard Brautigan a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of In Watermelon Sugar by Richard Brautigan (Four Seasons Foundation, 1968) is identified by: First edition published by Four Seasons Foundation, San Francisco, 1968, as 'Writing 21' in their Writing series. True first is the 1968 Four Seasons Foundation issue.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition published by Four Seasons Foundation, San Francisco, 1968, as 'Writing 21' in their Writing series
- Trade issue in pictorial stiff wraps; a simultaneous signed limited edition of 50 copies was bound in blue cloth-backed boards
- Later printings are noted on the copyright page
- Publisher imprint reads Four Seasons Foundation
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Richard Brautigan |
| Publisher | Four Seasons Foundation |
| Year | 1968 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition published by Four Seasons Foundation, San Francisco, 1968, as 'Writing 21' in their Writing series |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First edition published by Four Seasons Foundation, San Francisco, 1968, as 'Writing 21' in their Writing series. Trade issue in pictorial stiff wraps; a simultaneous signed limited edition of 50 copies was bound in blue cloth-backed boards. Later printings are noted on the copyright page.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1968 Four Seasons Foundation issue. The trade form is the pictorial softcover; a small signed cloth-backed limited of 50 copies appeared at the same time. The Delacorte/Delta issue of 1969 is a reprint.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
None; Delta/Delacorte are reprints.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *In Watermelon Sugar* by Richard Brautigan a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/in-watermelon-sugar
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.