# Is "The Cherokee Trail" by Louis L'Amour a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Cherokee Trail by Louis L'Amour (Bantam Books, 1982) is identified by: Bantam mass market paperback original, 1982 (ISBN 0553208462). True first appearance is the Bantam paperback original.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Bantam mass market paperback original, 1982 (ISBN 0553208462)
- First printing so stated on the copyright page
- Note a parallel leatherette Louis L'Amour Collection hardcover, issued without dust jacket as a subscription edition, also carries the 1982 date; the mass market paperback is the trade first
- Publisher imprint reads Bantam Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Louis L'Amour |
| Publisher | Bantam Books |
| Year | 1982 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Bantam mass market paperback original, 1982 (ISBN 0553208462) |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Bantam mass market paperback original, 1982 (ISBN 0553208462). First printing so stated on the copyright page. Note a parallel leatherette Louis L'Amour Collection hardcover, issued without dust jacket as a subscription edition, also carries the 1982 date; the mass market paperback is the trade first.

## Is this the true first?
True first appearance is the Bantam paperback original. The leatherette Collection hardcover is a parallel subscription issue, not a separately preceding trade hardcover.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition; paperback original.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Cherokee Trail* by Louis L'Amour a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-cherokee-trail
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.