# Is "The Hunter (Point Blank)" by Richard Stark (Donald E. Westlake) a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Hunter (Point Blank) by Richard Stark (Donald E. Westlake) (Permabook, 1962) is identified by: Paperback original issued under the pseudonym 'Richard Stark,' a Permabook (Pocket Books) printing, catalog number M-4272, dated December 1962. The true first is the 1962 Permabook (Pocket Books) paperback original; there was no hardcover first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Paperback original issued under the pseudonym 'Richard Stark,' a Permabook (Pocket Books) printing, catalog number M-4272, dated December 1962
- Color pictorial wrapper with cover art by Harry Bennett
- First Parker novel; later reissued and film-tied as 'Point Blank.'
- Publisher imprint reads Permabook
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Richard Stark (Donald E. Westlake) |
| Publisher | Permabook |
| Year | 1962 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Paperback original issued under the pseudonym 'Richard Stark,' a Permabook (Pocket Books) printing, catalog number M-4272, dated December… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Paperback original issued under the pseudonym 'Richard Stark,' a Permabook (Pocket Books) printing, catalog number M-4272, dated December 1962. Color pictorial wrapper with cover art by Harry Bennett. First Parker novel; later reissued and film-tied as 'Point Blank.'

## Is this the true first?
The true first is the 1962 Permabook (Pocket Books) paperback original; there was no hardcover first edition. The later University of Chicago Press reissues are first-thus only.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Not a book-club title; identify by the Permabook first-printing state and the M-4272 catalog number. The 'Point Blank' film tie-in editions of 1967 postdate it.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Hunter (Point Blank)* by Richard Stark (Donald E. Westlake) a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-hunter-point-blank
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.