# Is "Visions of Gerard" by Jack Kerouac a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Visions of Gerard by Jack Kerouac (Farrar, Straus and Company, 1963) is identified by: Quarter black cloth with decorative salmon-pink and white boards, gilt-titled spine; drawings by James Spanfeller in the text and on the jacket. True first is the 1963 Farrar, Straus and Company hardcover, with the stated First Printing, 1963 on the copyright page.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Quarter black cloth with decorative salmon-pink and white boards, gilt-titled spine; drawings by James Spanfeller in the text and on the jacket
- Copyright page states First Printing, 1963
- Dust jacket priced 3.95 on the front flap
- Publisher imprint reads Farrar, Straus and Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Jack Kerouac |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Company |
| Year | 1963 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Quarter black cloth with decorative salmon-pink and white boards, gilt-titled spine… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Quarter black cloth with decorative salmon-pink and white boards, gilt-titled spine; drawings by James Spanfeller in the text and on the jacket. Copyright page states First Printing, 1963. Dust jacket priced 3.95 on the front flap.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the 1963 Farrar, Straus and Company hardcover, with the stated First Printing, 1963 on the copyright page.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Visions of Gerard* by Jack Kerouac a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/visions-of-gerard
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.