# Is "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (McClelland & Stewart, 1985) is identified by: McClelland & Stewart (Toronto) 1985 is the true first, preceding the US Houghton Mifflin 1986 and UK Jonathan Cape 1986. McClelland & Stewart Toronto 1985 is the true first; Houghton Mifflin Boston 1986 is the first US; Jonathan Cape London 1986 is the first UK.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- McClelland & Stewart (Toronto) 1985 is the true first, preceding the US Houghton Mifflin 1986 and UK Jonathan Cape 1986
- ISBN 0-7710-0813-9, printed and bound in Canada by T.H. Best Printing Company
- Issued in publisher's two-toned boards (commonly described as beige cloth-effect with a maroon spine and light spine lettering; dealer descriptions of the boards vary somewhat) with a pictorial dust jacket
- The key first-issue jacket point is the descriptive blurb likening the book to 'A Clockwork Orange, as seen by women,' set in a near-future locale resembling Cambridge, Massachusetts; a first-state jacket carries its original printed price on the flap
- Publisher imprint reads McClelland & Stewart
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Margaret Atwood |
| Publisher | McClelland & Stewart |
| Year | 1985 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | McClelland & Stewart (Toronto) 1985 is the true first, preceding the US Houghton Mifflin 1986 and UK Jonathan Cape 1986 |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
McClelland & Stewart (Toronto) 1985 is the true first, preceding the US Houghton Mifflin 1986 and UK Jonathan Cape 1986. ISBN 0-7710-0813-9, printed and bound in Canada by T.H. Best Printing Company. Issued in publisher's two-toned boards (commonly described as beige cloth-effect with a maroon spine and light spine lettering; dealer descriptions of the boards vary somewhat) with a pictorial dust jacket. The key first-issue jacket point is the descriptive blurb likening the book to 'A Clockwork Orange, as seen by women,' set in a near-future locale resembling Cambridge, Massachusetts; a first-state jacket carries its original printed price on the flap.

## Is this the true first?
McClelland & Stewart Toronto 1985 is the true first; Houghton Mifflin Boston 1986 is the first US; Jonathan Cape London 1986 is the first UK. The 1985 Canadian issue has clear precedence and won the 1985 Governor General's Award for English-language fiction.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
US and UK editions are dated 1986 with different imprints; later printings are shown by number line. The Canadian first is markedly scarcer.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Handmaid's Tale* by Margaret Atwood a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-handmaids-tale
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.