# Is "The Fly on the Wall" by Tony Hillerman a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Fly on the Wall by Tony Hillerman (Harper & Row, 1971) is identified by: Harper & Row first, 1971 (ISBN 0060118970): copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' with the Harper number line, 212 pages, octavo. The US Harper & Row edition (1971) is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Harper & Row first, 1971 (ISBN 0060118970): copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' with the Harper number line, 212 pages, octavo
- Bound in quarter blue cloth over blue paper boards with the title stamped in blue and white on the spine; first-issue dust jacket designed by Paul Spina, priced on the front flap, which should be present
- A non-Navajo political/newsroom thriller
- Publisher imprint reads Harper & Row
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Tony Hillerman |
| Publisher | Harper & Row |
| Year | 1971 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Harper & Row first, 1971 (ISBN 0060118970): copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' with the Harper number line, 212 pages, octavo |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Harper & Row first, 1971 (ISBN 0060118970): copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' with the Harper number line, 212 pages, octavo. Bound in quarter blue cloth over blue paper boards with the title stamped in blue and white on the spine; first-issue dust jacket designed by Paul Spina, priced on the front flap, which should be present. A non-Navajo political/newsroom thriller.

## Is this the true first?
The US Harper & Row edition (1971) is the true first. This is Hillerman's second novel and a standalone (not a Leaphorn/Chee book), and it is genuinely scarcer in collectible condition than the series titles. Binding, pagination, and jacket points are corroborated by the Tony Hillerman Portal (ehillerman.unm.edu) and ABAA dealers.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club copies lack the printed jacket price and the stated 'FIRST EDITION' with number line, and are typically on lighter, blind-stamped boards; the trade first retains both the stated line and the Paul Spina jacket with price intact.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Fly on the Wall* by Tony Hillerman a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-fly-on-the-wall
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.