# Is "The Deltoid Pumpkin Seed" by John McPhee a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Deltoid Pumpkin Seed by John McPhee (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1973) is identified by: Farrar, Straus and Giroux first printing, 1973, with no later-printing statement on the copyright page. US true first (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1973); first edition and first printing coincide.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Farrar, Straus and Giroux first printing, 1973, with no later-printing statement on the copyright page
- Bound in orange paper-covered boards with a sage-green cloth backstrip, gilt spine lettering, and a dark-orange topstain
- The first-state pictorial dust jacket carries the original printed price on the front flap; that price should be present (unclipped) on an unrestored jacket
- Chronicles the Aereon experimental hybrid airship
- Ahearn (Author Price Guides) records it as the first edition of this title
- Publisher imprint reads Farrar, Straus and Giroux
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John McPhee |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
| Year | 1973 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Farrar, Straus and Giroux first printing, 1973, with no later-printing statement on the copyright page |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Farrar, Straus and Giroux first printing, 1973, with no later-printing statement on the copyright page. Bound in orange paper-covered boards with a sage-green cloth backstrip, gilt spine lettering, and a dark-orange topstain. The first-state pictorial dust jacket carries the original printed price on the front flap; that price should be present (unclipped) on an unrestored jacket. Chronicles the Aereon experimental hybrid airship. Ahearn (Author Price Guides) records it as the first edition of this title.

## Is this the true first?
US true first (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1973); first edition and first printing coincide.

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

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Deltoid Pumpkin Seed* by John McPhee a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-deltoid-pumpkin-seed
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.