# Is "Plutonian Ode and Other Poems 1977-1980" by Allen Ginsberg a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Plutonian Ode and Other Poems 1977-1980 by Allen Ginsberg (City Lights Books, 1982) is identified by: City Lights Books, San Francisco, 1982, Pocket Poets Series No. The 1982 City Lights printing is the first edition of the collected book, existing in both wrappered and clothbound states.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- City Lights Books, San Francisco, 1982, Pocket Poets Series No
- 40, 112 pp, first printing
- Issued in two simultaneous states: the common glossy printed wrappers, and a scarcer clothbound issue (publisher's grey cloth with a printed dust jacket, reportedly about 1200 copies)
- Illustrated with a full-page color plate by Elizabeth Koda-Callan
- Publisher imprint reads City Lights Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Allen Ginsberg |
| Publisher | City Lights Books |
| Year | 1982 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | City Lights Books, San Francisco, 1982, Pocket Poets Series No |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
City Lights Books, San Francisco, 1982, Pocket Poets Series No. 40, 112 pp, first printing. Issued in two simultaneous states: the common glossy printed wrappers, and a scarcer clothbound issue (publisher's grey cloth with a printed dust jacket, reportedly about 1200 copies). Illustrated with a full-page color plate by Elizabeth Koda-Callan.

## Is this the true first?
The 1982 City Lights printing is the first edition of the collected book, existing in both wrappered and clothbound states. The title poem was printed earlier and separately: it appeared in a Fall 1978 CoEvolution Quarterly / Journal for the Protection of All Beings issue, and a small separate printing of roughly 400 copies (Morgan A40) was distributed at the Rocky Flats protest benefit — both precede this collection.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition. Note the clothbound issue exists alongside the standard wrappers; the wrappers state is not a later or lesser printing.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Plutonian Ode and Other Poems 1977-1980* by Allen Ginsberg a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/plutonian-ode-and-other-poems-1977-1980
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.