# Is "The Wild Boys: A Book of the Dead" by William S. Burroughs a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Wild Boys: A Book of the Dead by William S. Burroughs (Grove Press, 1971) is identified by: Cloth in dust jacket; first printing with no later printings stated. True first is the 1971 Grove Press US hardcover.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Cloth in dust jacket; first printing with no later printings stated
- Priced dust jacket
- The US Grove first precedes the UK Calder & Boyars edition of 1972
- Publisher imprint reads Grove Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | William S. Burroughs |
| Publisher | Grove Press |
| Year | 1971 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Cloth in dust jacket; first printing with no later printings stated |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Cloth in dust jacket; first printing with no later printings stated. Priced dust jacket. The US Grove first precedes the UK Calder & Boyars edition of 1972.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1971 Grove Press US hardcover.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Wild Boys: A Book of the Dead* by William S. Burroughs a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-wild-boys-a-book-of-the-dead
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.