# Is "Mona (a.k.a. Grifter's Game)" by Lawrence Block a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Mona (a.k.a. Grifter's Game) by Lawrence Block (Gold Medal, 1961) is identified by: Paperback original published as 'Mona' by Fawcett Gold Medal, February 1961, catalog number s1085, in pictorial card wrappers with yellow-stained edges, collating [6],7-159,[1] pages with publisher's ads. The true first is the 1961 US Gold Medal paperback original titled 'Mona.' It was later reprinted as 'Sweet Slow Death' (Jove, 1986), 'Mona' (Carroll & Graf, 1994), and 'Grifter's Game' (Hard Case Crime, 2004), and a Five Star hardcover appeared in 1999; none of these reissues is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Paperback original published as 'Mona' by Fawcett Gold Medal, February 1961, catalog number s1085, in pictorial card wrappers with yellow-stained edges, collating [6],7-159,[1] pages with publisher's ads
- No hardcover was issued in 1961
- Block's first novel under his own name
- Publisher imprint reads Gold Medal
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Lawrence Block |
| Publisher | Gold Medal |
| Year | 1961 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Paperback original published as 'Mona' by Fawcett Gold Medal, February 1961, catalog number s1085, in pictorial card wrappers with… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Paperback original published as 'Mona' by Fawcett Gold Medal, February 1961, catalog number s1085, in pictorial card wrappers with yellow-stained edges, collating [6],7-159,[1] pages with publisher's ads. No hardcover was issued in 1961. Block's first novel under his own name.

## Is this the true first?
The true first is the 1961 US Gold Medal paperback original titled 'Mona.' It was later reprinted as 'Sweet Slow Death' (Jove, 1986), 'Mona' (Carroll & Graf, 1994), and 'Grifter's Game' (Hard Case Crime, 2004), and a Five Star hardcover appeared in 1999; none of these reissues is the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition; the retitled paperback and hardcover reissues are later editions, not the true first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Mona (a.k.a. Grifter's Game)* by Lawrence Block a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/mona-aka-grifters-game
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.