# Is "The Moon by Night" by Madeleine L'Engle a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Moon by Night by Madeleine L'Engle (Farrar, Straus and Company, 1963) is identified by: Farrar, Straus and Company first edition dated 1963, bound in publisher's blue cloth boards, in pictorial dust jacket. US Farrar, Straus and Company (New York) is the true first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Farrar, Straus and Company first edition dated 1963, bound in publisher's blue cloth boards, in pictorial dust jacket
- Second Austin Family book
- Confirm the absence of any later-printing statement on the copyright page; a first-state jacket carries the original printed price and is not price-clipped
- Publisher imprint reads Farrar, Straus and Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Madeleine L'Engle |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Company |
| Year | 1963 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Children's / illustrated |
| Key point | Farrar, Straus and Company first edition dated 1963, bound in publisher's blue cloth boards, in pictorial dust jacket |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Farrar, Straus and Company first edition dated 1963, bound in publisher's blue cloth boards, in pictorial dust jacket. Second Austin Family book. Confirm the absence of any later-printing statement on the copyright page; a first-state jacket carries the original printed price and is not price-clipped.

## Is this the true first?
US Farrar, Straus and Company (New York) is the true first edition. The firm's name did not add 'Giroux' until 1964, so a genuine 1963 first correctly reads 'Farrar, Straus and Company' — a jacket or title page reading 'Farrar, Straus and Giroux' indicates a later state or reprint.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Book-club reprints generally lack a printed jacket price and omit first-printing indicators.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Moon by Night* by Madeleine L'Engle a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-moon-by-night
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.