# Is "The Violent Bear It Away" by Flannery O'Connor a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Violent Bear It Away by Flannery O'Connor (Farrar, Straus and Cudahy, 1960) is identified by: Farrar, Straus and Cudahy imprint (the pre-FSG name) with the copyright page reading only 'Copyright 1955, 1960 by Flannery O'Connor' and NO printing or edition statement; the first printing is identified by the absence of any later-printing indication. US Farrar, Straus and Cudahy is the true first; the UK Longmans edition (1960) follows.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Farrar, Straus and Cudahy imprint (the pre-FSG name) with the copyright page reading only 'Copyright 1955, 1960 by Flannery O'Connor' and NO printing or edition statement; the first printing is identified by the absence of any later-printing indication
- Cloth-backed patterned boards
- 243 pages; published 8 February 1960; first-issue jacket designed by Milton Glaser
- O'Connor's second novel
- Publisher imprint reads Farrar, Straus and Cudahy
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Flannery O'Connor |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Cudahy |
| Year | 1960 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Farrar, Straus and Cudahy imprint (the pre-FSG name) with the copyright page reading only 'Copyright 1955, 1960 by Flannery O'Connor' and… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Farrar, Straus and Cudahy imprint (the pre-FSG name) with the copyright page reading only 'Copyright 1955, 1960 by Flannery O'Connor' and NO printing or edition statement; the first printing is identified by the absence of any later-printing indication. Cloth-backed patterned boards; 243 pages; published 8 February 1960; first-issue jacket designed by Milton Glaser. O'Connor's second novel.

## Is this the true first?
US Farrar, Straus and Cudahy is the true first; the UK Longmans edition (1960) follows. The Cudahy imprint, not 'Giroux,' is correct for the 1960 first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Because no first-printing statement exists, the jacket and binding distinguish issues: the trade first carries the original jacket price; the book-club edition has no flap price and a blind-stamp to the rear board.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Violent Bear It Away* by Flannery O'Connor a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-violent-bear-it-away
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.