# Is "Too Many Women" by Rex Stout a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Too Many Women by Rex Stout (Viking Press, 1947) is identified by: The Viking Press, New York, 1947, first printing; the twelfth Nero Wolfe novel. US Viking 1947 is the true first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The Viking Press, New York, 1947, first printing; the twelfth Nero Wolfe novel
- The first printing bears no later-printing notation on the copyright page
- Bound in green cloth, the front cover and spine lettered in very dark green with a yellow wavy rule and the rear cover blank
- Issued in a full-color pictorial dust jacket illustrated by Hallock, which in the correct state retains its printed price
- Publisher imprint reads Viking Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Rex Stout |
| Publisher | Viking Press |
| Year | 1947 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The Viking Press, New York, 1947, first printing; the twelfth Nero Wolfe novel |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
The Viking Press, New York, 1947, first printing; the twelfth Nero Wolfe novel. The first printing bears no later-printing notation on the copyright page. Bound in green cloth, the front cover and spine lettered in very dark green with a yellow wavy rule and the rear cover blank. Issued in a full-color pictorial dust jacket illustrated by Hallock, which in the correct state retains its printed price.

## Is this the true first?
US Viking 1947 is the true first edition.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No single-title Viking book-club edition exists — any 'club' copy is a Detective Book Club omnibus, not a Viking book. The Viking first is light-green textured cloth with a the printed price / 'The Viking Press New York' front flap and 'Printed in the USA by Haddon Craftsmen' on the copyright page. (identification per rexstoutfirsts.com)

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Too Many Women* by Rex Stout a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/too-many-women
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.