# Is "The Optimist's Daughter" by Eudora Welty a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty (Random House, 1972) is identified by: Random House first edition has First Edition stated on the copyright page, in first-issue cloth and jacket bearing the printed price. The 300-copy signed, numbered limited edition is the true first issue; the First-Edition-stated trade printing follows.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Random House first edition has First Edition stated on the copyright page, in first-issue cloth and jacket bearing the printed price
- A signed limited edition of 300 numbered copies (signed by Welty at the limitation, in a publisher's slipcase) was issued and precedes the trade
- Won the 1973 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
- Publisher imprint reads Random House
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Eudora Welty |
| Publisher | Random House |
| Year | 1972 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Random House first edition has First Edition stated on the copyright page, in first-issue cloth and jacket bearing the printed price |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Random House first edition has First Edition stated on the copyright page, in first-issue cloth and jacket bearing the printed price. A signed limited edition of 300 numbered copies (signed by Welty at the limitation, in a publisher's slipcase) was issued and precedes the trade. Won the 1973 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

## Is this the true first?
The 300-copy signed, numbered limited edition is the true first issue; the First-Edition-stated trade printing follows.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club copies lack the First Edition statement and carry a rear-board blind-stamp.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Optimist's Daughter* by Eudora Welty a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-optimists-daughter
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.