# Is "The Sirens of Titan" by Kurt Vonnegut a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut (Houghton Mifflin, 1961) is identified by: The true first edition is the 1959 Dell paperback original (Dell First Edition B138), with 'First printing - October, 1959' stated on the copyright page and cover art by Richard Powers. The genuine first edition is the Dell paperback original (1959), which precedes the first hardcover.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The true first edition is the 1959 Dell paperback original (Dell First Edition B138), with 'First printing - October, 1959' stated on the copyright page and cover art by Richard Powers
- The first hardcover is Houghton Mifflin 1961, identified by 'First Printing' on the copyright page, with the jacket carrying the printed price
- Publisher imprint reads Houghton Mifflin
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Kurt Vonnegut |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin |
| Year | 1961 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The true first edition is the 1959 Dell paperback original (Dell First Edition B138), with 'First printing - October, 1959' stated on the… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
The true first edition is the 1959 Dell paperback original (Dell First Edition B138), with 'First printing - October, 1959' stated on the copyright page and cover art by Richard Powers. The first hardcover is Houghton Mifflin 1961, identified by 'First Printing' on the copyright page, with the jacket carrying the printed price.

## Is this the true first?
The genuine first edition is the Dell paperback original (1959), which precedes the first hardcover. Collectors of hardcover firsts use the Houghton Mifflin 1961 printing, but it is the first hardcover, not the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The Houghton Mifflin book-club hardcover lacks the price and is blind-stamped; the Dell paperback original cannot be confused with a book-club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Sirens of Titan* by Kurt Vonnegut a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-sirens-of-titan
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.