# Is "The Desert Music and Other Poems" by William Carlos Williams a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Desert Music and Other Poems by William Carlos Williams (Random House, 1954) is identified by: Issued in two forms: a signed limited edition of roughly 100 copies (quarter cloth over paper-covered boards, signed by Williams) and a trade edition in tan cloth with dust jacket lettered in red and black. US Random House, 1954.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Issued in two forms: a signed limited edition of roughly 100 copies (quarter cloth over paper-covered boards, signed by Williams) and a trade edition in tan cloth with dust jacket lettered in red and black
- Random House trade firsts of this period carry no 'First Printing' statement; a first trade printing is identified by the 1954 dating and absence of any later-printing notice
- Publisher imprint reads Random House
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | William Carlos Williams |
| Publisher | Random House |
| Year | 1954 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Issued in two forms: a signed limited edition of roughly 100 copies (quarter cloth over… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Issued in two forms: a signed limited edition of roughly 100 copies (quarter cloth over paper-covered boards, signed by Williams) and a trade edition in tan cloth with dust jacket lettered in red and black. Random House trade firsts of this period carry no 'First Printing' statement; a first trade printing is identified by the 1954 dating and absence of any later-printing notice.

## Is this the true first?
US Random House, 1954. The signed limited (about 100 copies) precedes and is the premium over the trade first.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Desert Music and Other Poems* by William Carlos Williams a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-desert-music-and-other-poems
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.