# Is "The Barracks" by John McGahern a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Barracks by John McGahern (Faber & Faber, London, 1963) is identified by: True first: Faber and Faber, London, 1963 (McGahern's first novel; winner of the AE Memorial Award). UK Faber (London) 1963 is the true first and precedes the US first American edition, The Macmillan Company, New York, 1964 (stated 'First American Edition', dust jacket designed by Ellen Raskin).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first: Faber and Faber, London, 1963 (McGahern's first novel; winner of the AE Memorial Award)
- Demy octavo; the copyright leaf records first publication in 1963 with no later-impression line, bound in cloth lettered in gilt on the spine and issued in an unclipped grey/black/green dust jacket with the price present at the flap
- Cloth colour should be treated as a reported variance — most ABAA/dealer copies describe red cloth, a minority describe black — so identify primarily by the single 1963 Faber imprint and an unclipped priced jacket rather than by colour alone
- Publisher imprint reads Faber & Faber, London
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John McGahern |
| Publisher | Faber & Faber, London |
| Year | 1963 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first: Faber and Faber, London, 1963 (McGahern's first novel; winner of the AE Memorial Award) |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
True first: Faber and Faber, London, 1963 (McGahern's first novel; winner of the AE Memorial Award). Demy octavo; the copyright leaf records first publication in 1963 with no later-impression line, bound in cloth lettered in gilt on the spine and issued in an unclipped grey/black/green dust jacket with the price present at the flap. Cloth colour should be treated as a reported variance — most ABAA/dealer copies describe red cloth, a minority describe black — so identify primarily by the single 1963 Faber imprint and an unclipped priced jacket rather than by colour alone.

## Is this the true first?
UK Faber (London) 1963 is the true first and precedes the US first American edition, The Macmillan Company, New York, 1964 (stated 'First American Edition', dust jacket designed by Ellen Raskin). Written in English, so no translation precedence. Census claim confirmed.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition of the first is documented; the 1964 New York Macmillan issue is the first American, not a book-club printing.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Barracks* by John McGahern a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-barracks
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.