The points of issue
New Directions first edition, 1962, first printing so stated, issued as a New Directions Paperbook in wrappers (NDP118). The wrappers issue is the true first form; there was no simultaneous New Directions cloth first. Won the 1963 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, awarded posthumously (Williams died March 1963).
Is this the true first?
US true first; posthumous Pulitzer winner. The 1962 New Directions issue is the original-wrappers paperbook. A New Directions clothbound state subtitled 'Collected Poems 1950–1962' did not appear until 1967, and a separate UK MacGibbon & Kee hardcover came in 1963; neither is the 1962 first.
Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition. The trap is treating the later 1967 New Directions clothbound state (or the 1963 UK hardcover) as the 1962 first; the genuine first is the 1962 wrappers paperbook.
Frequently asked questions
Is my copy of Pictures from Brueghel and Other Poems a first edition?
Look for these first-edition points: New Directions first edition, 1962, first printing so stated, issued as a New Directions Paperbook in wrappers (NDP118). The wrappers issue is the true first form; there was no simultaneous New Directions cloth first. Won the 1963 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, awarded posthumously (Williams died March 1963).
How do I tell the first printing from a later one?
Check the copyright page for the publisher's first-printing convention and confirm the points above. US true first; posthumous Pulitzer winner. The 1962 New Directions issue is the original-wrappers paperbook. A New Directions clothbound state subtitled 'Collected Poems 1950–1962' did not appear until 1967, and a separate UK MacGibbon & Kee hardcover came in 1963; neither is the 1962 first.
Is the book-club edition the same as the first?
No book-club edition. The trap is treating the later 1967 New Directions clothbound state (or the 1963 UK hardcover) as the 1962 first; the genuine first is the 1962 wrappers paperbook.
I have a first edition of Pictures from Brueghel and Other Poems — what should I do?
If you're clearing books, New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup in Albuquerque, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies aren't lost. To sell, see the author's collecting guide. Either way, nothing valuable ends up in a landfill.