# Is "Visions of Cody (complete edition)" by Jack Kerouac a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Visions of Cody (complete edition) by Jack Kerouac (McGraw-Hill, 1972) is identified by: First edition of the complete text, published posthumously by McGraw-Hill, New York, 1972 (a partial version appeared in 1959). The 1972 McGraw-Hill hardcover is the true first of the complete text.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition of the complete text, published posthumously by McGraw-Hill, New York, 1972 (a partial version appeared in 1959)
- Maroon cloth boards with gilt spine, octavo, 398 pages, in illustrated dust jacket; no statement of later printing
- Six-page introduction by Allen Ginsberg
- Publisher imprint reads McGraw-Hill
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Jack Kerouac |
| Publisher | McGraw-Hill |
| Year | 1972 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition of the complete text, published posthumously by McGraw-Hill, New York, 1972… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition of the complete text, published posthumously by McGraw-Hill, New York, 1972 (a partial version appeared in 1959). Maroon cloth boards with gilt spine, octavo, 398 pages, in illustrated dust jacket; no statement of later printing. Six-page introduction by Allen Ginsberg.

## Is this the true first?
The 1972 McGraw-Hill hardcover is the true first of the complete text.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Visions of Cody (complete edition)* by Jack Kerouac a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/visions-of-cody-complete-edition
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.