# Is "The Case of the Hesitant Hostess" by Erle Stanley Gardner a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Case of the Hesitant Hostess by Erle Stanley Gardner (William Morrow, 1953) is identified by: First published by William Morrow & Company, New York, 1953. The US William Morrow edition is the true first, preceding the later Pocket Books paperback and any UK issue.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First published by William Morrow & Company, New York, 1953
- A first edition/first printing carries the Morrow imprint with the 1953-dated title page and no later-printing statement, in publisher's cloth with the original dust jacket
- A Perry Mason mystery
- Publisher imprint reads William Morrow
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Erle Stanley Gardner |
| Publisher | William Morrow |
| Year | 1953 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First published by William Morrow & Company, New York, 1953 |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First published by William Morrow & Company, New York, 1953. A first edition/first printing carries the Morrow imprint with the 1953-dated title page and no later-printing statement, in publisher's cloth with the original dust jacket. A Perry Mason mystery.

## Is this the true first?
The US William Morrow edition is the true first, preceding the later Pocket Books paperback and any UK issue.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Pocket Books paperback (1956) and other reprints follow the Morrow first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Case of the Hesitant Hostess* by Erle Stanley Gardner a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-case-of-the-hesitant-hostess
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.