# Is "Please Pass the Guilt" by Rex Stout a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Please Pass the Guilt by Rex Stout (Viking Press, 1973) is identified by: Viking Press, New York, 1973 first printing. The US Viking Press edition is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Viking Press, New York, 1973 first printing
- A Nero Wolfe novel
- Quarter red cloth over black paper boards, spine stamped in gold, in a black and brown pictorial dust jacket
- Referenced Ahearn APG 072a
- Publisher imprint reads Viking Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Rex Stout |
| Publisher | Viking Press |
| Year | 1973 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Viking Press, New York, 1973 first printing |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Viking Press, New York, 1973 first printing. A Nero Wolfe novel. Quarter red cloth over black paper boards, spine stamped in gold, in a black and brown pictorial dust jacket. Referenced Ahearn APG 072a.

## Is this the true first?
The US Viking Press edition is the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The Viking book club edition is distinguished by 'Book Club Edition' printed on the inside front dust-jacket flap and the absence of a printed jacket price.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Please Pass the Guilt* by Rex Stout a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/please-pass-the-guilt
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.