# Is "S.S. San Pedro" by James Gould Cozzens a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of S.S. San Pedro by James Gould Cozzens (Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1931) is identified by: US first edition with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page, New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1931; a short novel of about 136 pages. US first (Harcourt, Brace, 1931) is the true first in the American text.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- US first edition with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page, New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1931; a short novel of about 136 pages
- Issued in silver-stamped slate-blue cloth
- Later Harcourt printings omit the stated 'First Edition' line
- Publisher imprint reads Harcourt, Brace and Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | James Gould Cozzens |
| Publisher | Harcourt, Brace and Company |
| Year | 1931 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | US first edition with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page, New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1931; a short novel of about 136… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
US first edition with 'First Edition' stated on the copyright page, New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1931; a short novel of about 136 pages. Issued in silver-stamped slate-blue cloth. Later Harcourt printings omit the stated 'First Edition' line.

## Is this the true first?
US first (Harcourt, Brace, 1931) is the true first in the American text. The first UK edition, published by Longmans, Green in 1931 under the expanded title S.S. San Pedro: A Tale of the Sea, is bound in dark grayish-green cloth lettered in gilt on the spine; Bruccoli records substantial textual differences between the US and UK texts (Bruccoli A7), so the two are distinct states rather than a simple reprint.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Harcourt reprints omit the stated 'First Edition' line. The differently titled and differently bound Longmans issue is the UK first, not a book-club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *S.S. San Pedro* by James Gould Cozzens a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/ss-san-pedro
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.