# Is "Maus I: A Survivor's Tale — My Father Bleeds History" by Art Spiegelman a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Maus I: A Survivor's Tale — My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman (Pantheon Books, 1986) is identified by: Paperback original issued first; the trade hardcover came later. US is the true first (Spiegelman is American; written and published in English).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Paperback original issued first; the trade hardcover came later
- The copyright page must state 'First Edition', with the verso ending 'Manufactured in the U.S.A. // First Edition.' The genuine 1986 issue stands alone as 'Maus: A Survivor's Tale' without a 'Volume I' designation keyed to a second volume
- Photographs and mouse-headed figures on the cover; original price to the flap
- Correct publisher/imprint: Pantheon Books

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Art Spiegelman |
| Publisher | Pantheon Books |
| Year | 1986 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Comic / graphic novel |
| Key point | Paperback original issued first; the trade hardcover came later |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Paperback original issued first; the trade hardcover came later. The copyright page must state 'First Edition', with the verso ending 'Manufactured in the U.S.A. // First Edition.' The genuine 1986 issue stands alone as 'Maus: A Survivor's Tale' without a 'Volume I' designation keyed to a second volume. Photographs and mouse-headed figures on the cover; original price to the flap.

## Is this the true first?
US is the true first (Spiegelman is American; written and published in English). The genuine 1986 first collects only the first six chapters. After Maus II appeared in 1991, Pantheon reissued Vol. I labeled 'Volume I' / 'My Father Bleeds History' WITHOUT changing the copyright-page date; that reissue is routinely misrepresented as the 1986 first. Distinguish by the absence of the volume designation and by the softcover-original format.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No traditional book-club edition; the confusion is the later 'Volume I' reissue (added volume subtitle, often a barcode and revised back panel) and 'The Complete Maus' (1996, single hardcover) — both later than the 1986 first. Look for the standalone title and the stated 'First Edition.'

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Maus I: A Survivor's Tale — My Father Bleeds History* by Art Spiegelman a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/maus-i-a-survivors-tale-my-father-bleeds-history
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.