# Is "The Uses of Literature" by Italo Calvino a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Uses of Literature by Italo Calvino (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1986) is identified by: First US edition, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, San Diego, 1986; translated from the Italian by Patrick Creagh; essays selected by Calvino. First English-language essay collection drawn from the Italian 'Una pietra sopra' (1980).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First US edition, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, San Diego, 1986; translated from the Italian by Patrick Creagh; essays selected by Calvino
- Approximately 341 pages; issued in publisher's cloth with a blue-green (teal) cloth spine over blue paper-covered boards, in a dust jacket that should retain its printed price on the flap
- Publisher imprint reads Harcourt Brace Jovanovich
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Italo Calvino |
| Publisher | Harcourt Brace Jovanovich |
| Year | 1986 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First US edition, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, San Diego, 1986; translated from the Italian… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First US edition, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, San Diego, 1986; translated from the Italian by Patrick Creagh; essays selected by Calvino. Approximately 341 pages; issued in publisher's cloth with a blue-green (teal) cloth spine over blue paper-covered boards, in a dust jacket that should retain its printed price on the flap.

## Is this the true first?
First English-language essay collection drawn from the Italian 'Una pietra sopra' (1980). The UK Secker and Warburg volume 'The Literature Machine' (1987) is a separate, differently selected translation of the same source, not simply a retitled reissue, so the 1986 Harcourt US book is the true first for this particular selection and title.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No notable book-club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Uses of Literature* by Italo Calvino a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-uses-of-literature
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.