# Is "The Moor's Last Sigh" by Salman Rushdie a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Moor's Last Sigh by Salman Rushdie (Jonathan Cape, 1995) is identified by: Hardback in boards with gilt-lettered spine, issued in dust jacket. The UK Jonathan Cape edition of 1995 precedes the US Pantheon edition of 1996, making the Cape printing the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Hardback in boards with gilt-lettered spine, issued in dust jacket
- First edition, first impression has the full number line ending in 1; later printings state the impression
- Booker Prize shortlisted and Whitbread Novel Award winner
- Publisher imprint reads Jonathan Cape
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Salman Rushdie |
| Publisher | Jonathan Cape |
| Year | 1995 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Hardback in boards with gilt-lettered spine, issued in dust jacket |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Hardback in boards with gilt-lettered spine, issued in dust jacket. First edition, first impression has the full number line ending in 1; later printings state the impression. Booker Prize shortlisted and Whitbread Novel Award winner.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Jonathan Cape edition of 1995 precedes the US Pantheon edition of 1996, making the Cape printing the true first. A separate signed limited issue of 200 numbered copies also exists, but the standard trade hardback is the true first for general identification.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later impressions add the impression statement on the copyright page; the true first shows the complete number line down to 1.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Moor's Last Sigh* by Salman Rushdie a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-moors-last-sigh
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.