# Is "The Superorganism: The Beauty, Elegance, and Strangeness of Insect Societies" by E. O. Wilson a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Superorganism: The Beauty, Elegance, and Strangeness of Insect Societies by E. O. Wilson (W. W. Norton, 2009) is identified by: Norton first printing states 'First Edition' on the copyright page with a full descending number line ending in 1. US true first is the W.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- W. W. Norton first printing states 'First Edition' on the copyright page with a full descending number line ending in 1
- Co-authored with Bert Hölldobler (whose name leads on the title page), with line drawings by Margaret C. Nelson; a large quarto of roughly xxi plus 522 pages, illustrated with about 110 color and 100 black-and-white plates and figures
- Issued in a pictorial dust jacket with the printed price present on the front flap
- Publisher imprint reads W. W. Norton
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | E. O. Wilson |
| Publisher | W. W. Norton |
| Year | 2009 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | W. W. Norton first printing states 'First Edition' on the copyright page with a full descending number line ending in 1 |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
W. W. Norton first printing states 'First Edition' on the copyright page with a full descending number line ending in 1. Co-authored with Bert Hölldobler (whose name leads on the title page), with line drawings by Margaret C. Nelson; a large quarto of roughly xxi plus 522 pages, illustrated with about 110 color and 100 black-and-white plates and figures. Issued in a pictorial dust jacket with the printed price present on the front flap.

## Is this the true first?
US true first is the W. W. Norton edition of 2009 (ISBN 978-0-393-06704-0), co-authored with Bert Hölldobler; confirm by the stated 'First Edition' and the full number line ending in 1.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No prominent book-club edition; confirm the Norton first by the stated 'First Edition' and the complete number line to 1, as later printings drop the 1 from the line.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Superorganism: The Beauty, Elegance, and Strangeness of Insect Societies* by E. O. Wilson a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-superorganism-the-beauty-elegance-and-strangeness-of-ins
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.