# Is "Small Craft Warnings" by Tennessee Williams a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Small Craft Warnings by Tennessee Williams (New Directions, 1972) is identified by: First edition, New Directions, New York, 1972, issued simultaneously in cloth and in wrappers (NDP348). US New Directions 1972 is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, New Directions, New York, 1972, issued simultaneously in cloth and in wrappers (NDP348)
- The trade clothbound first has a dust jacket bearing the printed price on the front flap
- Octavo, 86 pages
- Publisher imprint reads New Directions
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Tennessee Williams |
| Publisher | New Directions |
| Year | 1972 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, New Directions, New York, 1972, issued simultaneously in cloth and in… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition, New Directions, New York, 1972, issued simultaneously in cloth and in wrappers (NDP348). The trade clothbound first has a dust jacket bearing the printed price on the front flap. Octavo, 86 pages.

## Is this the true first?
US New Directions 1972 is the true first. The UK Secker & Warburg edition followed in 1973 and is a later issue.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A New Directions book club edition does exist and must be distinguished from the trade first. The book club copy is in ecru cloth with the spine stamped in black, typically carries an unpriced (unclipped) jacket, may show a blind-stamp on the rear board, and is sometimes found with a book club newsletter laid in. The trade first is identified by the printed price on the jacket flap and the absence of a blind stamp.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Small Craft Warnings* by Tennessee Williams a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/small-craft-warnings
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.