# Is "The First Circle (V kruge pervom)" by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The First Circle (V kruge pervom) by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (Harper & Row, 1968) is identified by: First English appeared in 1968 in two distinct translations. First English is 1968, appearing in the West essentially simultaneously in the US (Harper & Row, Whitney translation) and the UK (Collins & Harvill, 'Michael Guybon' pseudonymous translation by Hayward, Harari, and Glenny); precedence between the two is close.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First English appeared in 1968 in two distinct translations
- The US Harper & Row 1968 edition uses the Thomas P. Whitney translation; identify its first printing by the stated first edition or a number line ending in 1
- The UK Collins & Harvill 1968 edition does NOT use the Whitney text — it uses a separate translation credited to 'Michael Guybon,' a pseudonym for the team of Max Hayward, Manya Harari, and Michael Glenny; identify it by the Collins & Harvill imprint and first-impression statement
- Both are based on the censored 87-chapter text
- Publisher imprint reads Harper & Row
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn |
| Publisher | Harper & Row |
| Year | 1968 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First English appeared in 1968 in two distinct translations |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First English appeared in 1968 in two distinct translations. The US Harper & Row 1968 edition uses the Thomas P. Whitney translation; identify its first printing by the stated first edition or a number line ending in 1. The UK Collins & Harvill 1968 edition does NOT use the Whitney text — it uses a separate translation credited to 'Michael Guybon,' a pseudonym for the team of Max Hayward, Manya Harari, and Michael Glenny; identify it by the Collins & Harvill imprint and first-impression statement. Both are based on the censored 87-chapter text.

## Is this the true first?
First English is 1968, appearing in the West essentially simultaneously in the US (Harper & Row, Whitney translation) and the UK (Collins & Harvill, 'Michael Guybon' pseudonymous translation by Hayward, Harari, and Glenny); precedence between the two is close. The Russian original surfaced in the West in 1968. The full 96-chapter text appeared only later as 'In the First Circle' (Willetts translation, 2009), a distinct restored edition.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Distinguish 'The First Circle' (1968, censored 87-chapter text) from 'In the First Circle' (2009, uncensored 96-chapter text, Willetts) — different texts, not printings. Also note the two 1968 editions are different translations, not printings of one another: Whitney (US Harper & Row) versus 'Michael Guybon' (UK Collins & Harvill).

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The First Circle (V kruge pervom)* by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-first-circle-v-kruge-pervom
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.