# Is "The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town" by John Grisham a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town by John Grisham (Doubleday, 2006) is identified by: "First Edition" is stated on the copyright page with the full number line present and counting down to 1. US Doubleday first, published October 2006.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- "First Edition" is stated on the copyright page with the full number line present and counting down to 1
- The binding has a red cloth spine with dark gray paper-covered boards and bright silver lettering stamped on the spine
- 360 pages including a photographic section
- The first-issue dust jacket is glossy black with an illustration of red fingers on the front panel, silver title and author lettering, and a color close-up photograph of Grisham on the back panel; the printed price should be present on the front flap (a first-issue jacket may be price-clipped, so the flap is not by itself disqualifying)
- This is Grisham's only nonfiction book
- Publisher imprint reads Doubleday
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John Grisham |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Year | 2006 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | "First Edition" is stated on the copyright page with the full number line present and… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
"First Edition" is stated on the copyright page with the full number line present and counting down to 1. The binding has a red cloth spine with dark gray paper-covered boards and bright silver lettering stamped on the spine; 360 pages including a photographic section. The first-issue dust jacket is glossy black with an illustration of red fingers on the front panel, silver title and author lettering, and a color close-up photograph of Grisham on the back panel; the printed price should be present on the front flap (a first-issue jacket may be price-clipped, so the flap is not by itself disqualifying). This is Grisham's only nonfiction book.

## Is this the true first?
US Doubleday first, published October 2006. The number line descending to 1 together with the stated "First Edition" line confirms the true first printing.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later printings drop the 1 from the number line and omit the "First Edition" statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town* by John Grisham a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-innocent-man-murder-and-injustice-in-a-small-town
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.