# Is "The Crossover" by Kwame Alexander a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Crossover by Kwame Alexander (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014) is identified by: First edition published 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston). US true first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition published 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston)
- First printing has a full number line ending in 1; copyright 2014
- Publisher's pictorial boards; first-issue jacket without the Newbery Medal seal
- A novel in verse
- ISBN 9780544107717
- Publisher imprint reads Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Kwame Alexander |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin Harcourt |
| Year | 2014 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | First edition published 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston) |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition published 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Boston). First printing has a full number line ending in 1; copyright 2014. Publisher's pictorial boards; first-issue jacket without the Newbery Medal seal. A novel in verse. ISBN 9780544107717.

## Is this the true first?
US true first edition. Awarded the Newbery Medal in 2015.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A number line not ending in 1 indicates a later printing. Book-club editions typically lack a jacket price, and jackets bearing the Newbery seal postdate the 2015 award.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Crossover* by Kwame Alexander a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-crossover
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.