# Is "The Sunset Limited (play)" by Cormac McCarthy a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Sunset Limited (play) by Cormac McCarthy (Vintage, 2006) is identified by: Trade paperback original, subtitled "A Novel in Dramatic Form," in glossy pictorial card wrappers. The Vintage paperback original is the true first; there was no earlier hardcover.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Trade paperback original, subtitled "A Novel in Dramatic Form," in glossy pictorial card wrappers
- First printing carries the full number line ending in 1 on the copyright page
- No preceding hardcover trade edition
- Publisher imprint reads Vintage
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Cormac McCarthy |
| Publisher | Vintage |
| Year | 2006 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Trade paperback original, subtitled "A Novel in Dramatic Form," in glossy pictorial card wrappers |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Trade paperback original, subtitled "A Novel in Dramatic Form," in glossy pictorial card wrappers. First printing carries the full number line ending in 1 on the copyright page. No preceding hardcover trade edition.

## Is this the true first?
The Vintage paperback original is the true first; there was no earlier hardcover.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition. Later printings show a number line not ending in 1.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Sunset Limited (play)* by Cormac McCarthy a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-sunset-limited-play
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.