# Is "Philadelphia Fire" by John Edgar Wideman a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Philadelphia Fire by John Edgar Wideman (Henry Holt, 1990) is identified by: Henry Holt and Company imprint dated 1990, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page; paper-covered boards with cloth spine, roughly 199 pages; first-issue dust jacket carries the printed price on the front flap. The US Henry Holt hardcover of 1990 is the true first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Henry Holt and Company imprint dated 1990, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page; paper-covered boards with cloth spine, roughly 199 pages; first-issue dust jacket carries the printed price on the front flap
- Publisher imprint reads Henry Holt
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John Edgar Wideman |
| Publisher | Henry Holt |
| Year | 1990 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Henry Holt and Company imprint dated 1990, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page; paper-covered boards with cloth spine… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Henry Holt and Company imprint dated 1990, with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page; paper-covered boards with cloth spine, roughly 199 pages; first-issue dust jacket carries the printed price on the front flap.

## Is this the true first?
The US Henry Holt hardcover of 1990 is the true first edition. It won the 1991 PEN/Faulkner Award, Wideman's second after Sent for You Yesterday.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club edition is smaller, typically blind-stamped on the rear board, with an unpriced jacket.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Philadelphia Fire* by John Edgar Wideman a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/philadelphia-fire
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.