# Is "The Blind Assassin" by Margaret Atwood a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood (McClelland & Stewart, 2000) is identified by: McClelland & Stewart (Toronto) 2000 is the true first (Booker Prize winner), preceding the UK Bloomsbury and US Nan A. McClelland & Stewart Toronto 2000 is the true first; Bloomsbury London 2000 and Nan A.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- McClelland & Stewart (Toronto) 2000 is the true first (Booker Prize winner), preceding the UK Bloomsbury and US Nan A. Talese/Doubleday editions of 2000
- Canadian first has the M&S imprint and first-printing statement
- Publisher imprint reads McClelland & Stewart
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Margaret Atwood |
| Publisher | McClelland & Stewart |
| Year | 2000 |
| True first | Canadian edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | McClelland & Stewart (Toronto) 2000 is the true first (Booker Prize winner), preceding the UK Bloomsbury and US Nan A. Talese/Doubleday… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
McClelland & Stewart (Toronto) 2000 is the true first (Booker Prize winner), preceding the UK Bloomsbury and US Nan A. Talese/Doubleday editions of 2000. Canadian first has the M&S imprint and first-printing statement.

## Is this the true first?
McClelland & Stewart Toronto 2000 is the true first; Bloomsbury London 2000 and Nan A. Talese/Doubleday New York 2000 follow. The Canadian first is the priority issue.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
UK and US editions distinguished by imprint; later printings by number line. Book club editions lack the M&S first-state points.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Blind Assassin* by Margaret Atwood a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-blind-assassin
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.