The points of issue
First English edition, translated by Hardie St. Martin and Leonard Mades: Alfred A. Knopf cloth in dust jacket, New York, 1973. This Knopf translation is abridged (roughly twenty pages cut versus the Spanish text).
Is this the true first?
The true first edition is the Spanish 'El obsceno pájaro de la noche' (Seix Barral, Barcelona, 1970). The 1973 Knopf is the first (abridged) English-language edition. The 2024 New Directions edition revises the St. Martin/Mades translation with Megan McDowell, restoring nearly twenty pages of previously untranslated text — a distinct first-thus for the complete text, not a reprint of the Knopf text.
Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Godine and later paperbacks reprint the abridged Knopf text; the McDowell unabridged edition is a separate first-thus, not a book-club edition or reprint of the 1973 cloth.
Frequently asked questions
Is my copy of The Obscene Bird of Night a first edition?
Look for these first-edition points: First English edition, translated by Hardie St. Martin and Leonard Mades: Alfred A. Knopf cloth in dust jacket, New York, 1973. This Knopf translation is abridged (roughly twenty pages cut versus the Spanish text).
How do I tell the first printing from a later one?
Check the copyright page for the publisher's first-printing convention and confirm the points above. The true first edition is the Spanish 'El obsceno pájaro de la noche' (Seix Barral, Barcelona, 1970). The 1973 Knopf is the first (abridged) English-language edition. The 2024 New Directions edition revises the St. Martin/Mades translation with Megan McDowell, restoring nearly twenty pages of previo
Is the book-club edition the same as the first?
Godine and later paperbacks reprint the abridged Knopf text; the McDowell unabridged edition is a separate first-thus, not a book-club edition or reprint of the 1973 cloth.
I have a first edition of The Obscene Bird of Night — what should I do?
If you're clearing books, New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup in Albuquerque, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies aren't lost. To sell, see the author's collecting guide. Either way, nothing valuable ends up in a landfill.