# Is "The Brave Cowboy" by Edward Abbey a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Brave Cowboy by Edward Abbey (Dodd, Mead, 1956) is identified by: Dodd, Mead first-printing convention: 1956 title-page date matching the copyright page with no additional-printing statement. True first is the 1956 Dodd, Mead US edition, considered the scarcest of Abbey's novels.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Dodd, Mead first-printing convention: 1956 title-page date matching the copyright page with no additional-printing statement
- Subtitle on the title page reads An Old Tale in a New Time
- Publisher imprint reads Dodd, Mead
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Edward Abbey |
| Publisher | Dodd, Mead |
| Year | 1956 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Dodd, Mead first-printing convention: 1956 title-page date matching the copyright page… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Dodd, Mead first-printing convention: 1956 title-page date matching the copyright page with no additional-printing statement. Subtitle on the title page reads An Old Tale in a New Time.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1956 Dodd, Mead US edition, considered the scarcest of Abbey's novels. Basis for the 1962 film Lonely Are the Brave; later film-tie-in paperbacks are not firsts.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A separate Western Book Club (London) edition appeared in 1957, bound in turquoise-blue boards lettered in black on the spine; it is not the first and should not be confused with the Dodd, Mead trade first. Confirm the Dodd, Mead imprint on the title page and watch for restored jackets.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Brave Cowboy* by Edward Abbey a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-brave-cowboy
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.