# Is "The Mexican Night: Travel Journal" by Lawrence Ferlinghetti a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Mexican Night: Travel Journal by Lawrence Ferlinghetti (New Directions, 1970) is identified by: Issued simultaneously in clothbound and as a New Directions Paperbook. True first is the 1970 New Directions issue; both the clothbound and the New Directions Paperbook are simultaneous first-edition states.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Issued simultaneously in clothbound and as a New Directions Paperbook
- The first-edition copyright page carries the New Directions publication statement for 1970 with no later-printing indication
- New Directions did not use a numeric printing line on titles of this period
- Publisher imprint reads New Directions
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Lawrence Ferlinghetti |
| Publisher | New Directions |
| Year | 1970 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Issued simultaneously in clothbound and as a New Directions Paperbook |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Issued simultaneously in clothbound and as a New Directions Paperbook. The first-edition copyright page carries the New Directions publication statement for 1970 with no later-printing indication; New Directions did not use a numeric printing line on titles of this period.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1970 New Directions issue; both the clothbound and the New Directions Paperbook are simultaneous first-edition states.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Mexican Night: Travel Journal* by Lawrence Ferlinghetti a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-mexican-night-travel-journal
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.