# Is "Triple Jeopardy" by Rex Stout a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Triple Jeopardy by Rex Stout (Viking Press, 1952) is identified by: US Viking Press, 1952, first printing. The US Viking Press edition is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- US Viking Press, 1952, first printing
- A Nero Wolfe collection of three novellas (Home to Roost
- The Cop-Killer
- The Squirt and the Monkey)
- Yellow cloth printed in black, issued in a black, white and purple dust wrapper
- Publisher imprint reads Viking Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Rex Stout |
| Publisher | Viking Press |
| Year | 1952 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | US Viking Press, 1952, first printing |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
US Viking Press, 1952, first printing. A Nero Wolfe collection of three novellas (Home to Roost; The Cop-Killer; The Squirt and the Monkey). Yellow cloth printed in black, issued in a black, white and purple dust wrapper.

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

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
For Rex Stout's Viking titles the copyright page does not separate a true first from the book-club edition — Viking printed no edition statement or number line, and no 'Book Club Edition' marking appears on the flap. Identify the Viking first by its priced dust jacket (flap price + 'The Viking Press New York' imprint or ship colophon), the printer imprint on the copyright page (usually Colonial Press), the per-title binding and spine device, and the book-club copy's roughly quarter-inch greater height. (identification per rexstoutfirsts.com)

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Triple Jeopardy* by Rex Stout a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/triple-jeopardy
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.