# Is "The Dream Songs" by John Berryman a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Dream Songs by John Berryman (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1969) is identified by: Farrar, Straus and Giroux first edition, first printing; the first complete one-volume gathering of all 385 Dream Songs (combining 77 Dream Songs and His Toy, His Dream, His Rest); navy/black cloth with gilt spine titles, green endpapers; xx, 427 pages; pictorial dust jacket priced at the original price on the front flap. US true first complete edition (first thus for the unified text).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Farrar, Straus and Giroux first edition, first printing; the first complete one-volume gathering of all 385 Dream Songs (combining 77 Dream Songs and His Toy, His Dream, His Rest); navy/black cloth with gilt spine titles, green endpapers; xx, 427 pages; pictorial dust jacket priced at the original price on the front flap
- Publisher imprint reads Farrar, Straus and Giroux
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John Berryman |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
| Year | 1969 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Poetry |
| Key point | Farrar, Straus and Giroux first edition, first printing; the first complete one-volume gathering of all 385 Dream Songs (combining 77 Dream… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Farrar, Straus and Giroux first edition, first printing; the first complete one-volume gathering of all 385 Dream Songs (combining 77 Dream Songs and His Toy, His Dream, His Rest); navy/black cloth with gilt spine titles, green endpapers; xx, 427 pages; pictorial dust jacket priced at the original price on the front flap.

## Is this the true first?
US true first complete edition (first thus for the unified text). Signed copies scarce given Berryman's death in 1972.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition; later printings carry a printing statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Dream Songs* by John Berryman a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-dream-songs
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.