# Is "The Flight of the Horse" by Larry Niven a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Flight of the Horse by Larry Niven (Ballantine, 1973) is identified by: Ballantine paperback original, catalog number 23487, September 1973, in pictorial wraps with Dean Ellis cover art. US Ballantine paperback original is the true first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Ballantine paperback original, catalog number 23487, September 1973, in pictorial wraps with Dean Ellis cover art
- A story collection of seven pieces, five of them featuring the time-retrieval agent Hanville Svetz, including the title story
- As a paperback original there is no printer's number line; identify the first printing by the 23487 catalog number, the original printed cover price, and a copyright page free of any later-printing statement
- Publisher imprint reads Ballantine
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Larry Niven |
| Publisher | Ballantine |
| Year | 1973 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Ballantine paperback original, catalog number 23487, September 1973, in pictorial wraps with Dean Ellis cover art |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Ballantine paperback original, catalog number 23487, September 1973, in pictorial wraps with Dean Ellis cover art. A story collection of seven pieces, five of them featuring the time-retrieval agent Hanville Svetz, including the title story. As a paperback original there is no printer's number line; identify the first printing by the 23487 catalog number, the original printed cover price, and a copyright page free of any later-printing statement.

## Is this the true first?
US Ballantine paperback original is the true first edition.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Flight of the Horse* by Larry Niven a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-flight-of-the-horse
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.