# Is "November Twenty Six Nineteen Hundred Sixty Three" by Wendell Berry a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of November Twenty Six Nineteen Hundred Sixty Three by Wendell Berry (George Braziller, 1964) is identified by: George Braziller, New York, 1964, with drawings by Ben Shahn; a memorial poem for John F. Berry's first separately published poem in book form (the elegy first appeared in The Nation in 1963).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- George Braziller, New York, 1964, with drawings by Ben Shahn; a memorial poem for John F. Kennedy
- Issued in two states in 1964
- The signed limited issue is a run of 3013 copies, printed larger and on Fabriano handmade paper, with a tipped-in color plate at the rear, in cloth boards housed in a matching cloth slipcase, and signed by both Berry and Shahn on a leaf at the rear
- A concurrent trade edition was also issued, smaller and unsigned
- Publisher imprint reads George Braziller
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Wendell Berry |
| Publisher | George Braziller |
| Year | 1964 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | George Braziller, New York, 1964, with drawings by Ben Shahn; a memorial poem for John F.… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
George Braziller, New York, 1964, with drawings by Ben Shahn; a memorial poem for John F. Kennedy. Issued in two states in 1964. The signed limited issue is a run of 3013 copies, printed larger and on Fabriano handmade paper, with a tipped-in color plate at the rear, in cloth boards housed in a matching cloth slipcase, and signed by both Berry and Shahn on a leaf at the rear. A concurrent trade edition was also issued, smaller and unsigned.

## Is this the true first?
Berry's first separately published poem in book form (the elegy first appeared in The Nation in 1963). Both the signed limited and the trade edition are 1964 firsts; the limited is the premier issue.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club concern. Correct the prior note: the trade edition is a concurrent 1964 issue, not a later reissue distinct from the limited.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *November Twenty Six Nineteen Hundred Sixty Three* by Wendell Berry a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/november-twenty-six-nineteen-hundred-sixty-three
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.