# Is "Play It As It Lays" by Joan Didion a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Play It As It Lays by Joan Didion (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1970) is identified by: First edition, first printing: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, New York, published 13 July 1970. The census claim is confirmed.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, first printing: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, New York, published 13 July 1970
- The copyright page states 'First printing, 1970' — this statement is the reliable test, consistent with FSG house practice of the period
- Collation [viii], 214 pages, octavo
- Bound in publisher's original orange cloth decorated in blind over a black cloth spine lettered in gilt
- Jacket designed by Janet Halverson: a snake pointing its forked tongue at a gradient sun on the front panel, lettered in black, with a photograph of Didion by Julian Wasser on the rear panel
- Priced jacket, price present at the front flap; an unclipped jacket is preferred but the flap price is not itself the point of issue
- Publisher imprint reads Farrar, Straus and Giroux

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Joan Didion |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
| Year | 1970 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, first printing: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, New York, published 13 July 1970 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition, first printing: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, New York, published 13 July 1970. The copyright page states 'First printing, 1970' — this statement is the reliable test, consistent with FSG house practice of the period. Collation [viii], 214 pages, octavo. Bound in publisher's original orange cloth decorated in blind over a black cloth spine lettered in gilt. Jacket designed by Janet Halverson: a snake pointing its forked tongue at a gradient sun on the front panel, lettered in black, with a photograph of Didion by Julian Wasser on the rear panel. Priced jacket, price present at the front flap; an unclipped jacket is preferred but the flap price is not itself the point of issue.

## Is this the true first?
The census claim is confirmed. The US Farrar, Straus & Giroux 1970 edition is the true first. The first UK edition is Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, 1971, preceded by the American issue by roughly a year; the UK edition is collected separately but has no precedence claim. Didion's second novel, following Run, River (1963).

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A book club issue of this title exists and is offered by dealers as such, but the specific distinguishing tells were not documented in any source reached during this pass. The dependable test remains the copyright page: a copy lacking the 'First printing, 1970' statement is not the trade first. Do not rely on undocumented club tells for this title until they are confirmed.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Play It As It Lays* by Joan Didion a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/play-it-as-it-lays
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.