# Is "The Abortion: An Historical Romance 1966" by Richard Brautigan a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Abortion: An Historical Romance 1966 by Richard Brautigan (Simon & Schuster, 1971) is identified by: First edition published by Simon & Schuster, New York, March 1971, with 'First printing' stated on the copyright page, 226 pages, cover photography by Edmund Shea. True first is the 1971 Simon & Schuster edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition published by Simon & Schuster, New York, March 1971, with 'First printing' stated on the copyright page, 226 pages, cover photography by Edmund Shea
- Issued simultaneously in a hardcover (printed cloth boards with photo-illustrated dust jacket) and in printed photo-illustrated wrappers
- Brautigan's first trade hardcover from a major house
- Publisher imprint reads Simon & Schuster
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Richard Brautigan |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster |
| Year | 1971 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition published by Simon & Schuster, New York, March 1971, with 'First printing' stated on the copyright page, 226 pages, cover… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition published by Simon & Schuster, New York, March 1971, with 'First printing' stated on the copyright page, 226 pages, cover photography by Edmund Shea. Issued simultaneously in a hardcover (printed cloth boards with photo-illustrated dust jacket) and in printed photo-illustrated wrappers. Brautigan's first trade hardcover from a major house.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1971 Simon & Schuster edition. The collectible form is the stated-first-printing hardcover in the priced first-issue jacket; the simultaneous softcover wrappers issue is also a 1971 first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A Simon & Schuster book club edition exists, distinguished by the usual lack of a printed jacket price and a blind-stamp impression on the rear board.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Abortion: An Historical Romance 1966* by Richard Brautigan a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-abortion-an-historical-romance-1966
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.