# Is "The Mysteries of Pittsburgh" by Michael Chabon a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Mysteries of Pittsburgh by Michael Chabon (William Morrow, 1988) is identified by: Chabon's debut novel, 297 pages, bound with a purple cloth spine over cream boards and silver spine lettering. US William Morrow is the true first; the UK Hodder edition followed.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Chabon's debut novel, 297 pages, bound with a purple cloth spine over cream boards and silver spine lettering
- The copyright page states 'First Edition' with the complete number line ending in 1 (later printings drop the lowest digit)
- The glossy cream dust jacket has front lettering in red, blue and purple within a blue-and-red border, with jacket-back praise from Carolyn Forché, Oakley Hall, David Leavitt and others; a first-issue jacket should retain its printed flap price and be unclipped
- Publisher imprint reads William Morrow
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Michael Chabon |
| Publisher | William Morrow |
| Year | 1988 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Chabon's debut novel, 297 pages, bound with a purple cloth spine over cream boards and silver spine lettering |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Chabon's debut novel, 297 pages, bound with a purple cloth spine over cream boards and silver spine lettering. The copyright page states 'First Edition' with the complete number line ending in 1 (later printings drop the lowest digit). The glossy cream dust jacket has front lettering in red, blue and purple within a blue-and-red border, with jacket-back praise from Carolyn Forché, Oakley Hall, David Leavitt and others; a first-issue jacket should retain its printed flap price and be unclipped.

## Is this the true first?
US William Morrow is the true first; the UK Hodder edition followed. The hardcover first precedes the later Perennial paperback.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No major book-club edition; later printings drop the lowest number from the line, and reprints appear as Harper/Perennial paperbacks.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Mysteries of Pittsburgh* by Michael Chabon a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-mysteries-of-pittsburgh
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.