# Is "What a Kingdom It Was" by Galway Kinnell a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of What a Kingdom It Was by Galway Kinnell (Houghton Mifflin, 1960) is identified by: Kinnell's first book, including The Avenue Bearing the Initial of Christ into the New World. US Houghton Mifflin is the true first edition; the author's debut, with no prior edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Kinnell's first book, including The Avenue Bearing the Initial of Christ into the New World
- First edition, Houghton Mifflin, cloth-backed boards in the photo-illustrated dust jacket with a red top-stain
- First printing carries no later-printing statement, per Houghton Mifflin practice of the period
- Publisher imprint reads Houghton Mifflin
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Galway Kinnell |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin |
| Year | 1960 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Kinnell's first book, including The Avenue Bearing the Initial of Christ into the New… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Kinnell's first book, including The Avenue Bearing the Initial of Christ into the New World. First edition, Houghton Mifflin, cloth-backed boards in the photo-illustrated dust jacket with a red top-stain. First printing carries no later-printing statement, per Houghton Mifflin practice of the period.

## Is this the true first?
US Houghton Mifflin is the true first edition; the author's debut, with no prior edition.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *What a Kingdom It Was* by Galway Kinnell a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/what-a-kingdom-it-was
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.