# Is "Lord of Light" by Roger Zelazny a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny (Doubleday, 1967) is identified by: True first edition: Doubleday & Company, Garden City, New York, 1967, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page and no later-printing line. The US Doubleday hardcover of 1967 is the true first edition, first printing, identified by 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page, dark blue cloth with silver spine lettering, [vi]+257 pagination, and the priced first-issue jacket.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first edition: Doubleday & Company, Garden City, New York, 1967, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page and no later-printing line
- Collation is [vi] + 257 pages
- Bound in publisher's dark blue cloth with silver lettering on the spine
- The first-issue dust jacket carries the printed cover price on the front flap; a price-clipped example loses that corner but remains the trade first if the copyright-page statement and binding agree
- This is the 1968 Hugo Award winner for best novel and a 1967 Nebula nominee
- A signed copy is one additionally bearing Zelazny's authentic signature; the signing does not itself change the edition, so first confirm the trade-first points, then the autograph
- Publisher imprint reads Doubleday

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Roger Zelazny |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Year | 1967 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first edition: Doubleday & Company, Garden City, New York, 1967, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page and no… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
True first edition: Doubleday & Company, Garden City, New York, 1967, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page and no later-printing line. Collation is [vi] + 257 pages. Bound in publisher's dark blue cloth with silver lettering on the spine. The first-issue dust jacket carries the printed cover price on the front flap; a price-clipped example loses that corner but remains the trade first if the copyright-page statement and binding agree. This is the 1968 Hugo Award winner for best novel and a 1967 Nebula nominee. A signed copy is one additionally bearing Zelazny's authentic signature; the signing does not itself change the edition, so first confirm the trade-first points, then the autograph.

## Is this the true first?
The US Doubleday hardcover of 1967 is the true first edition, first printing, identified by 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page, dark blue cloth with silver spine lettering, [vi]+257 pagination, and the priced first-issue jacket.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Doubleday issued this title through its book clubs, and a club body is distinguished not by the copyright-page wording (clubs often reproduce the trade page) but by physical tells: a blind-stamped dot or square impressed into the lower rear board, a gutter code stamped at the foot of one of the last text pages, and thinner, cheaper paper and boards; club jackets are unpriced. Use the stated 'First Edition' line together with the absence of any rear-board blindstamp to confirm the trade first over a club edition or later printing.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Lord of Light* by Roger Zelazny a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/lord-of-light
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.