# Is "The Public Burning" by Robert Coover a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Public Burning by Robert Coover (The Viking Press, 1977) is identified by: The Viking Press, New York, 1977. The US Viking Press edition is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The Viking Press, New York, 1977
- First edition with the printed statement 'First published in 1977 by The Viking Press' on the copyright page and no statement of a later printing; quarter white cloth over black paper boards, 534 pages; first-issue dust jacket carrying the original price to the flap
- The Rosenberg/Nixon novel
- Publisher imprint reads The Viking Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Robert Coover |
| Publisher | The Viking Press |
| Year | 1977 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The Viking Press, New York, 1977 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
The Viking Press, New York, 1977. First edition with the printed statement 'First published in 1977 by The Viking Press' on the copyright page and no statement of a later printing; quarter white cloth over black paper boards, 534 pages; first-issue dust jacket carrying the original price to the flap. The Rosenberg/Nixon novel.

## Is this the true first?
The US Viking Press edition is the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club issues of the period are distinguished by a flap that lacks a printed price and, on some copies, a blind code stamped at the lower rear board; the trade first carries the printed flap price and the publisher's first-published statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Public Burning* by Robert Coover a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-public-burning
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.