# Is "Misterioso" by Gilbert Sorrentino a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Misterioso by Gilbert Sorrentino (Dalkey Archive Press, 1989) is identified by: First Dalkey Archive Press edition, Elmwood Park, Illinois, 1989 (ISBN 0-916583-43-0), the third and concluding volume of the 'Pack of Lies' trilogy that follows Odd Number and Rose Theatre. True first is the 1989 Dalkey Archive Press hardcover.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First Dalkey Archive Press edition, Elmwood Park, Illinois, 1989 (ISBN 0-916583-43-0), the third and concluding volume of the 'Pack of Lies' trilogy that follows Odd Number and Rose Theatre
- The trade first edition is a hardcover of 282 pages issued in dust jacket; the jacket should carry its printed price and describe the book as the close of the trilogy
- (Note: the earlier description of this title as 'issued in wraps' is not supported by the bibliographic record, which lists the 1989 first as a cloth hardcover; verify the copy in hand.) The three volumes were later collected as Pack of Lies (Dalkey Archive, 1997), a separate later publication
- Publisher imprint reads Dalkey Archive Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Gilbert Sorrentino |
| Publisher | Dalkey Archive Press |
| Year | 1989 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First Dalkey Archive Press edition, Elmwood Park, Illinois, 1989 (ISBN 0-916583-43-0), the third and concluding volume of the 'Pack of… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First Dalkey Archive Press edition, Elmwood Park, Illinois, 1989 (ISBN 0-916583-43-0), the third and concluding volume of the 'Pack of Lies' trilogy that follows Odd Number and Rose Theatre. The trade first edition is a hardcover of 282 pages issued in dust jacket; the jacket should carry its printed price and describe the book as the close of the trilogy. (Note: the earlier description of this title as 'issued in wraps' is not supported by the bibliographic record, which lists the 1989 first as a cloth hardcover; verify the copy in hand.) The three volumes were later collected as Pack of Lies (Dalkey Archive, 1997), a separate later publication.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1989 Dalkey Archive Press hardcover. The omnibus Pack of Lies (Dalkey Archive, 1997, ISBN 1-56478-154-3) is a later collected reprint, not the first appearance of Misterioso.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition of note; distinguish the 1989 first from the 1997 Pack of Lies trilogy collection and any later Dalkey reprintings.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Misterioso* by Gilbert Sorrentino a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/misterioso
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.