# Is "Open House" by Theodore Roethke a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Open House by Theodore Roethke (Alfred A. Knopf, 1941) is identified by: The first edition consists of 1000 hand-numbered copies; drab-blue cloth lettered in gilt with a red topstain, in dust jacket. US Knopf; no prior edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Roethke's first book
- The first edition consists of 1000 hand-numbered copies; drab-blue cloth lettered in gilt with a red topstain, in dust jacket
- The Borzoi (Knopf) colophon is present and each copy carries a handwritten number
- The hand-numbering is the identifying point
- (The copies are numbered but not, as a rule, signed by the author.)
- Publisher imprint reads Alfred A. Knopf
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Theodore Roethke |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Year | 1941 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Roethke's first book |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Roethke's first book. The first edition consists of 1000 hand-numbered copies; drab-blue cloth lettered in gilt with a red topstain, in dust jacket. The Borzoi (Knopf) colophon is present and each copy carries a handwritten number. The hand-numbering is the identifying point. (The copies are numbered but not, as a rule, signed by the author.)

## Is this the true first?
US Knopf; no prior edition. The 1000-copy hand-numbered first printing is the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Open House* by Theodore Roethke a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/open-house-theodore-roeth
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.