# Is "The Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture" by Wendell Berry a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture by Wendell Berry (Sierra Club Books, 1977) is identified by: Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, 1977. True first US edition and Berry's most influential work of nonfiction.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, 1977
- First printing is the navy blue cloth hardcover, title stamped in white on the spine and blind-embossed on the front cover, in dust jacket
- Identify the first printing by the copyright page showing no statement of a later printing; subsequent printings (a third printing appeared as early as 1978) add printing notation, so the absence of any additional-printing line marks the first
- Publisher imprint reads Sierra Club Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Wendell Berry |
| Publisher | Sierra Club Books |
| Year | 1977 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, 1977 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, 1977. First printing is the navy blue cloth hardcover, title stamped in white on the spine and blind-embossed on the front cover, in dust jacket. Identify the first printing by the copyright page showing no statement of a later printing; subsequent printings (a third printing appeared as early as 1978) add printing notation, so the absence of any additional-printing line marks the first.

## Is this the true first?
True first US edition and Berry's most influential work of nonfiction. The 1977 Sierra Club Books hardcover is the first; distinguish it from later Sierra Club and Counterpoint reissues.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition concern. Later Sierra Club reissues are distinct; confirm the first by the copyright page carrying no additional-printing statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture* by Wendell Berry a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-unsettling-of-america-culture-agriculture
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.