# Is "Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-45" by Barbara W. Tuchman a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-45 by Barbara W. Tuchman (The Macmillan Company, 1971) is identified by: First printing from The Macmillan Company (New York), 1971, running to 621 pages. US edition from The Macmillan Company (New York) is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing from The Macmillan Company (New York), 1971, running to 621 pages
- Bound in black cloth boards with silver spine lettering, with a map printed to the endpapers and a section of black-and-white photographic plates plus full-page maps within
- The copyright page carries Macmillan's first-printing statement
- The first-state dust jacket, designed by Robert Galster, retains the printed price on the front flap
- Publisher imprint reads The Macmillan Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Barbara W. Tuchman |
| Publisher | The Macmillan Company |
| Year | 1971 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing from The Macmillan Company (New York), 1971, running to 621 pages |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First printing from The Macmillan Company (New York), 1971, running to 621 pages. Bound in black cloth boards with silver spine lettering, with a map printed to the endpapers and a section of black-and-white photographic plates plus full-page maps within. The copyright page carries Macmillan's first-printing statement. The first-state dust jacket, designed by Robert Galster, retains the printed price on the front flap.

## Is this the true first?
US edition from The Macmillan Company (New York) is the true first. The UK edition appeared as 'Sand Against the Wind: Stilwell and the American Experience in China' (Macmillan, London); the US issue under the 'Stilwell' title is the precedent text. Won the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction (Tuchman's second) in 1972.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A Book-of-the-Month Club issue exists and is easily mistaken for the trade first, as it can carry the same first-printing wording; club copies lack the printed jacket price and typically show a small blind-stamp (dot or square) on the lower rear board. Later trade printings are stated as such on the copyright page.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-45* by Barbara W. Tuchman a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/stilwell-and-the-american-experience-in-china-1911-45
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.