# Is "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test" by Tom Wolfe a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1968) is identified by: First US edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux (New York), 1968; white cloth boards with the spine lettered in metallic orange, pink/purple, and blue and the publisher's device stamped in metallic green at the spine foot, with bright orange endpapers. Farrar, Straus and Giroux US (1968) is the true first; Weidenfeld & Nicolson issued the UK edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First US edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux (New York), 1968; white cloth boards with the spine lettered in metallic orange, pink/purple, and blue and the publisher's device stamped in metallic green at the spine foot, with bright orange endpapers
- The copyright page states 'First printing, 1968'
- First-issue dust jacket designed by Milton Glaser, with a photograph of the author by Jacques Lowe to the rear panel; the jacket should retain its original printed price on the front flap (present, unclipped)
- Publisher imprint reads Farrar, Straus and Giroux
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Tom Wolfe |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
| Year | 1968 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Poetry |
| Key point | First US edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux (New York), 1968; white cloth boards with the spine lettered in metallic orange, pink/purple… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First US edition, Farrar, Straus and Giroux (New York), 1968; white cloth boards with the spine lettered in metallic orange, pink/purple, and blue and the publisher's device stamped in metallic green at the spine foot, with bright orange endpapers. The copyright page states 'First printing, 1968'. First-issue dust jacket designed by Milton Glaser, with a photograph of the author by Jacques Lowe to the rear panel; the jacket should retain its original printed price on the front flap (present, unclipped).

## Is this the true first?
Farrar, Straus and Giroux US (1968) is the true first; Weidenfeld & Nicolson issued the UK edition. The defining New Journalism chronicle of Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters. Confirm the 'First printing, 1968' statement on the copyright page.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Distinguish from later printings via the 'First printing, 1968' copyright-page statement; the price-present, unclipped first-issue jacket is required for a true first in jacket. Beware book-club look-alikes, which typically lack the printed jacket price and may show a gutter-code blind stamp to the rear board.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test* by Tom Wolfe a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-electric-kool-aid-acid-test
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.