# Is "Atop an Underwood: Early Stories and Other Writings" by Jack Kerouac a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Atop an Underwood: Early Stories and Other Writings by Jack Kerouac (Viking, 1999) is identified by: Posthumous first edition, edited with commentary by Paul Marion, collecting more than sixty early pieces Kerouac wrote between about ages thirteen and twenty-one. The true first is the 1999 Viking (Viking Penguin, New York) hardcover, catalogued by dealers as the First American Edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Posthumous first edition, edited with commentary by Paul Marion, collecting more than sixty early pieces Kerouac wrote between about ages thirteen and twenty-one
- Bound in cloth in a dust jacket; the copyright page states First Edition with a complete number line descending to 1
- ISBN 0670888222
- Publisher imprint reads Viking
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Jack Kerouac |
| Publisher | Viking |
| Year | 1999 |
| True first | American edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Posthumous first edition, edited with commentary by Paul Marion, collecting more than sixty early pieces Kerouac wrote between about ages… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Posthumous first edition, edited with commentary by Paul Marion, collecting more than sixty early pieces Kerouac wrote between about ages thirteen and twenty-one. Bound in cloth in a dust jacket; the copyright page states First Edition with a complete number line descending to 1. ISBN 0670888222.

## Is this the true first?
The true first is the 1999 Viking (Viking Penguin, New York) hardcover, catalogued by dealers as the First American Edition.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Atop an Underwood: Early Stories and Other Writings* by Jack Kerouac a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/atop-an-underwood-early-stories-and-other-writings
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.