# Is "The Machineries of Joy" by Ray Bradbury a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Machineries of Joy by Ray Bradbury (Simon & Schuster, 1964) is identified by: First printing with no statement of a later printing on the copyright page. US Simon & Schuster first edition, New York, 1964.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First printing with no statement of a later printing on the copyright page
- Publisher's quarter yellow cloth over orange boards, stamped in black, top edge stained black
- Priced dust jacket present
- Story collection of twenty-one stories
- Publisher imprint reads Simon & Schuster
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Ray Bradbury |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster |
| Year | 1964 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First printing with no statement of a later printing on the copyright page |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First printing with no statement of a later printing on the copyright page. Publisher's quarter yellow cloth over orange boards, stamped in black, top edge stained black. Priced dust jacket present. Story collection of twenty-one stories.

## Is this the true first?
US Simon & Schuster first edition, New York, 1964.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A Bantam paperback edition followed and is a separate, later issue; the Simon & Schuster hardcover precedes it.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Machineries of Joy* by Ray Bradbury a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-machineries-of-joy
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.