# Is "Reflections in a Golden Eye" by Carson McCullers a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Reflections in a Golden Eye by Carson McCullers (Houghton Mifflin, 1941) is identified by: Houghton Mifflin first; tan cloth; copyright page dated 1941 with no later-printing statement; first-issue dust jacket designed by Alvin Lustig with the distinctive square cellophane/glassine window on the front panel and the original price of 2.00 on the flap (the glassine commonly wrinkles or tears). US Houghton Mifflin is the true first; the UK Cresset Press edition (1942) follows.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Houghton Mifflin first; tan cloth; copyright page dated 1941 with no later-printing statement; first-issue dust jacket designed by Alvin Lustig with the distinctive square cellophane/glassine window on the front panel and the original price of 2.00 on the flap (the glassine commonly wrinkles or tears)
- McCullers's second novel
- Publisher imprint reads Houghton Mifflin
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Carson McCullers |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin |
| Year | 1941 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Houghton Mifflin first; tan cloth; copyright page dated 1941 with no later-printing statement; first-issue dust jacket designed by Alvin… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Houghton Mifflin first; tan cloth; copyright page dated 1941 with no later-printing statement; first-issue dust jacket designed by Alvin Lustig with the distinctive square cellophane/glassine window on the front panel and the original price of 2.00 on the flap (the glassine commonly wrinkles or tears). McCullers's second novel.

## Is this the true first?
US Houghton Mifflin is the true first; the UK Cresset Press edition (1942) follows.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The book-club edition lacks the flap price and bears a blind-stamp; later printings are noted on the copyright page.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Reflections in a Golden Eye* by Carson McCullers a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/reflections-in-a-golden-eye
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.