# Is "Crossing Open Ground" by Barry Lopez a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Crossing Open Ground by Barry Lopez (Charles Scribner's Sons, 1988) is identified by: First edition published by Charles Scribner's Sons (New York) in 1988, ISBN 0-684-18817-1, octavo, 208 pages. True first US edition (essays); identified by the number line ending in 1, the gray quarter cloth over powder-blue boards, and the Alan Magee 'Casting of Runes' jacket art, not by a stated edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition published by Charles Scribner's Sons (New York) in 1988, ISBN 0-684-18817-1, octavo, 208 pages
- Identified by a number line on the copyright page ending in 1 (no stated edition)
- Bound in gray quarter cloth with pale gold spine lettering over powder-blue boards
- The first-issue pictorial dust jacket reproduces Alan Magee's painting 'Casting of Runes' and carries the printed price at the top of the front flap (a present, unclipped price is preferred but not itself a state point)
- Essay collection whose contents include 'The Stone Horse,' 'A Reflection on White Geese,' and 'Landscape and Narrative.'
- Publisher imprint reads Charles Scribner's Sons
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Barry Lopez |
| Publisher | Charles Scribner's Sons |
| Year | 1988 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition published by Charles Scribner's Sons (New York) in 1988, ISBN 0-684-18817-1, octavo, 208 pages |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First edition published by Charles Scribner's Sons (New York) in 1988, ISBN 0-684-18817-1, octavo, 208 pages. Identified by a number line on the copyright page ending in 1 (no stated edition). Bound in gray quarter cloth with pale gold spine lettering over powder-blue boards. The first-issue pictorial dust jacket reproduces Alan Magee's painting 'Casting of Runes' and carries the printed price at the top of the front flap (a present, unclipped price is preferred but not itself a state point). Essay collection whose contents include 'The Stone Horse,' 'A Reflection on White Geese,' and 'Landscape and Narrative.'

## Is this the true first?
True first US edition (essays); identified by the number line ending in 1, the gray quarter cloth over powder-blue boards, and the Alan Magee 'Casting of Runes' jacket art, not by a stated edition.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The prior 'Scribner A' point is an anachronism: Scribner abandoned the copyright-page 'A' after 1973, using a number line from 1974 onward, so a 1988 Scribner first shows a number line ending in 1, not an 'A.' The 1989 Vintage Books trade paperback (ISBN 0-679-72183-5) and the UK Macmillan/Picador issues are separate later editions, not the Scribner cloth first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Crossing Open Ground* by Barry Lopez a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/crossing-open-ground
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.