# Is "Misery" by Stephen King a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Misery by Stephen King (Viking, 1987) is identified by: 'First Published in 1987 by Viking Penguin' with the number line including 1. US Viking 1987 true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- 'First Published in 1987 by Viking Penguin' with the number line including 1
- Dust jacket with its printed price
- First state has the complete number line and the original jacket price
- Viking imprint (no gutter code, post-Doubleday)
- Publisher imprint reads Viking
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Stephen King |
| Publisher | Viking |
| Year | 1987 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | 'First Published in 1987 by Viking Penguin' with the number line including 1 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
'First Published in 1987 by Viking Penguin' with the number line including 1. Dust jacket with its printed price. First state has the complete number line and the original jacket price; Viking imprint (no gutter code, post-Doubleday).

## Is this the true first?
US Viking 1987 true first. UK Hodder & Stoughton (1987) is first British. Trade first told by the number line to 1 and the printed price jacket.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
BCE: rear-board blind-stamp, no jacket price, smaller trim, cheaper boards; number line lacks 1. Printed jacket price + full number line = trade first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Misery* by Stephen King a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/misery
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.