# Is "The Eye of the Heron" by Ursula K. Le Guin a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Eye of the Heron by Ursula K. Le Guin (Harper & Row, 1983) is identified by: First printing identified by a complete number line ending in 1 on the copyright page, in a priced pictorial dust jacket. US Harper & Row hardcover is the first separate edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing identified by a complete number line ending in 1 on the copyright page, in a priced pictorial dust jacket
- First appeared in the anthology Millennial Women
- the Harper & Row hardcover is the first separate book edition
- Publisher imprint reads Harper & Row
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Ursula K. Le Guin |
| Publisher | Harper & Row |
| Year | 1983 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing identified by a complete number line ending in 1 on the copyright page, in a priced pictorial dust jacket |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First printing identified by a complete number line ending in 1 on the copyright page, in a priced pictorial dust jacket. First appeared in the anthology Millennial Women (1978); the Harper & Row hardcover is the first separate book edition.

## Is this the true first?
US Harper & Row hardcover is the first separate edition. Note a date ambiguity: the copyright page is dated 1982 and many dealers catalogue the book as 1982, while Le Guin's own bibliography gives 1983; both years appear on confirmed first-printing copies.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book club editions lack the number line and the printed jacket price.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Eye of the Heron* by Ursula K. Le Guin a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-eye-of-the-heron
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.