# Is "To Your Scattered Bodies Go" by Philip José Farmer a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of To Your Scattered Bodies Go by Philip José Farmer (G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1971) is identified by: First US hardcover, G. The US Putnam 1971 hardcover is the true first book edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First US hardcover, G. P. Putnam's Sons (New York), 1971
- Octavo bound in black cloth, blind-stamped on the upper board and lettered in gilt on the spine
- First issue carries no later-printing statement on the copyright page; the first-issue dust jacket retains its printed cover price
- First book of the Riverworld sequence; won the 1972 Hugo Award for Best Novel
- Assembled and expanded from earlier Riverworld novellas
- Publisher imprint reads G. P. Putnam's Sons
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Philip José Farmer |
| Publisher | G. P. Putnam's Sons |
| Year | 1971 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First US hardcover, G. P. Putnam's Sons (New York), 1971 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First US hardcover, G. P. Putnam's Sons (New York), 1971. Octavo bound in black cloth, blind-stamped on the upper board and lettered in gilt on the spine. First issue carries no later-printing statement on the copyright page; the first-issue dust jacket retains its printed cover price. First book of the Riverworld sequence; won the 1972 Hugo Award for Best Novel. Assembled and expanded from earlier Riverworld novellas.

## Is this the true first?
The US Putnam 1971 hardcover is the true first book edition. Component stories appeared in magazines in 1965-66, and a Berkley Medallion paperback also appeared in 1971, but the Putnam hardcover is the first book form. UK editions are later.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The book-club edition lacks any first-edition statement, carries a blind-stamp (gutter dot / depression) on the rear board, and has a club jacket with no printed price.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *To Your Scattered Bodies Go* by Philip José Farmer a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/to-your-scattered-bodies-go
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.