# Is "The First Four Years" by Laura Ingalls Wilder a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The First Four Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Harper & Row, 1971) is identified by: US Harper & Row first, illustrated by Garth Williams, who is the correct first-edition illustrator for this posthumous title (there is no earlier Sewell/Boyle version). US Harper & Row first, published February 1971.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- US Harper & Row first, illustrated by Garth Williams, who is the correct first-edition illustrator for this posthumous title (there is no earlier Sewell/Boyle version)
- Foreword by Roger Lea MacBride
- Copyright page carries the first-printing notation; first-issue dust jacket carries the original price on the front flap
- Set from Wilder's unfinished pencil manuscript
- Publisher imprint reads Harper & Row
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Laura Ingalls Wilder |
| Publisher | Harper & Row |
| Year | 1971 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | US Harper & Row first, illustrated by Garth Williams, who is the correct first-edition… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
US Harper & Row first, illustrated by Garth Williams, who is the correct first-edition illustrator for this posthumous title (there is no earlier Sewell/Boyle version). Foreword by Roger Lea MacBride. Copyright page carries the first-printing notation; first-issue dust jacket carries the original price on the front flap. Set from Wilder's unfinished pencil manuscript.

## Is this the true first?
US Harper & Row first, published February 1971. Unlike the earlier novels, Garth Williams is correct for the true first because this book was only published after Wilder's death.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club editions lack the price on the jacket flap; later printings show later-printing notation.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The First Four Years* by Laura Ingalls Wilder a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-first-four-years
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.