# Is "Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith" by Jon Krakauer a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer (Doubleday, 2003) is identified by: Doubleday first edition (published July 15, 2003), ISBN 0-385-50951-0. US Doubleday is the true first, preceding the UK (Macmillan) edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Doubleday first edition (published July 15, 2003), ISBN 0-385-50951-0
- The copyright page states 'First Edition' with a full number line ending in 1
- The book is quarter-bound in grey cloth over cream-paper boards with silver stamping to the spine, in the publisher's pictorial dust jacket designed by John Fontana
- The first-issue jacket carries the printed price, unclipped
- Publisher imprint reads Doubleday
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Jon Krakauer |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Year | 2003 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Doubleday first edition (published July 15, 2003), ISBN 0-385-50951-0 |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Doubleday first edition (published July 15, 2003), ISBN 0-385-50951-0. The copyright page states 'First Edition' with a full number line ending in 1. The book is quarter-bound in grey cloth over cream-paper boards with silver stamping to the spine, in the publisher's pictorial dust jacket designed by John Fontana. The first-issue jacket carries the printed price, unclipped.

## Is this the true first?
US Doubleday is the true first, preceding the UK (Macmillan) edition. Later printings add an author's afterword responding to LDS Church criticism, making those a 'first thus' rather than the true first; on a genuine first the number line still ends in 1 and no afterword is present.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club hardcover of note. Distinguish the first from later printings (number line no longer ending in 1) and from the afterword reissue. The full line ending in 1, the priced Fontana jacket, and the grey-and-cream quarter binding together identify the first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith* by Jon Krakauer a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/under-the-banner-of-heaven-a-story-of-violent-faith
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.