# Is "The Island of the Colorblind" by Oliver Sacks a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Island of the Colorblind by Oliver Sacks (Picador, 1996) is identified by: The true first is the UK Picador hardcover, published 1996 as 'The Island of the Colour-blind' (British spelling). Corrected precedence: the UK Picador hardcover (1996) precedes the US Knopf hardcover (1997) by roughly a year, so Picador is the true global first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The true first is the UK Picador hardcover, published 1996 as 'The Island of the Colour-blind' (British spelling)
- The US Alfred A. Knopf edition followed in 1997, stated 'First Edition' with a number line descending to 1 and a Chip Kidd jacket; the US issue pairs the main text with 'Cycad Island'
- Publisher imprint reads Picador
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Oliver Sacks |
| Publisher | Picador |
| Year | 1996 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The true first is the UK Picador hardcover, published 1996 as 'The Island of the… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
The true first is the UK Picador hardcover, published 1996 as 'The Island of the Colour-blind' (British spelling). The US Alfred A. Knopf edition followed in 1997, stated 'First Edition' with a number line descending to 1 and a Chip Kidd jacket; the US issue pairs the main text with 'Cycad Island'.

## Is this the true first?
Corrected precedence: the UK Picador hardcover (1996) precedes the US Knopf hardcover (1997) by roughly a year, so Picador is the true global first edition. Knopf 1997 is the US first edition, not the overall first.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Island of the Colorblind* by Oliver Sacks a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-island-of-the-colorblind
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.