Cultural Cross Sections Elena Poniatowska In this column that originally appeared in La Jornada, Elena Poniatowska considers the role of editors and talks with Diego Rabasa, founder of publisher Sexto Piso. Already precarious, the pandemic lockdown has made the plight of independent publishers and bookstores in Mexico in light of Covid-19 even more acute. To be an editor is to answer the call of the gods. It’s a vocation, a ministry, an immense privilege, to enter the Olympus of literature. To be an editor is to pick those who have talent and launch them. To be a publisher is to foretell: this one will make it. It’s also to disappoint and reject. I recall the Dutch printer Alexander Stolz in Mexico holding out to me his exquisite edition of Benjamin Constant’s Adolphe, as if it were a diamond, at the Fondo de Cultura Económica, and the paternal care that Arnaldo Orfila Reynal took with the anguished palavering of Fernando del Paso. To be an editor is to be a psychologist and to be bewildered as to how to treat each creature-author. Vicente Rojo was my editor, and we have loved each other deeply since, but I never gave him trouble. What must that genius from Pachuca named Yuri Herrera be like? What’s his soft spot? I have to handle Carlos Montemayor with kid gloves because he’s unpredictable. Federico Alvarez, director of the FCE in Spain, told me that seeing Elena Garro and Helena Paz enter the FCE in Madrid was like falling into... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2020-06-03 21:05:48 UTC ]
We look back at the liquidation of Crown Books, which was once the third-largest bookstore chain in the U.S. before its closure in 2001. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-07-22 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The federal government’s civil suit to block the acquisition of Simon & Schuster by Penguin Random House is chugging along, with the trial set to begin on August 1. Exhibits to the joint pretrial motion, filed July 15, included lists of witnesses for both sides. Witnesses for both sides... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-07-20 16:13:34 UTC ]
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Today’s edition of Daily Deals is sponsored by Random House Canada - read A Town Called Solace in paperback.`Random House Canada - read A TOWN CALLED SOLACE in... Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-07-20 11:15:54 UTC ]
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I was 13 years old in a suburban mall Barnes & Noble, holding a copy of Please Don’t Kill the Freshman by Zoe Trope. The cover—featuring the silhouette of a young cheerleader whose stance seems sarcastic, her pom-poms flopping against gashes of blue and red—was young, angry, and awesome. I... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-07-19 14:56:41 UTC ]
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In the midst of a deluge of book bans across the country, Penguin Random House has erected billboards featuring quotes from books by LGBTQ authors in six cities—New York City, Chicago, Dallas, Orlando, Miami and Austin. Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law and Texas’ anti-trans youth healthcare bills... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-07-19 14:46:40 UTC ]
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Gail See, a Minneapolis-area bookseller for many years and a leader in Minnesota's literary community, who served as president of the ABA board from 1984-1986, has died at age 94. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-07-19 04:00:00 UTC ]
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In his grouchy, funny memoir, “A Factotum in the Book Trade,” Marius Kociejowski writes about what a good bookstore should feel like, famous customers he’s served and more. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-07-18 18:02:04 UTC ]
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The New Orleans bookstore is a shop with a mission—to eliminate mass incarceration through the promotion of literacy. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-07-15 04:00:00 UTC ]
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For Pride month, Penguin Random House installed billboard with quotes from LGBTQ books in areas where LGBTQ books are being banned. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-07-11 20:07:06 UTC ]
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In the back of my favorite bookstore in Brooklyn, there’s a wall covered in all the random things the employees have found in the used books they sell: photos, newspaper clippings, notes, receipts, pressed flowers, etc. It’s a fascinating little archive, both meaningless and somehow magical,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-07-11 14:16:40 UTC ]
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Random House buys a memoir about alcoholism and family, and Irish novelist Joseph O’Connor sells a historical trilogy to Europa. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-07-08 04:00:00 UTC ]
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#BookTok, where enthusiastic readers share reading recommendations, has gone from being a novelty to becoming an anchor in the publishing industry and a dominant driver of fiction sales. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-07-01 13:38:09 UTC ]
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Random House picks up a new novel by Salman Rushdie and a leadership guide by Bob Iger, Europa signs a British debut, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-07-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The owners of Franklin Fixtures, which supplies retail displays to bookstores, are opening a new independent bookstore and café named Plenty on Spring in Cookeville. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-07-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Alta Journal just released a map for the Western bookstore road trip of my dreams: it’s a guide to indie bookstores on the West coast (with a few options from the desert and other non-coastal spots thrown in, because why not). A lot of the picks, as to be expected, are clustered around cities... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-06-29 16:46:35 UTC ]
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A bookstore in New Mexico fosters a community of Native artists, writers, and fans of the flourishing Indigenous comic book genre. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2022-06-27 14:59:00 UTC ]
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Four writers and one bookseller gathered over Zoom to make a list devoted to fiction in which the city is more than mere setting. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-06-22 09:08:54 UTC ]
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The year 2021 saw a substantial increase in the number of independent bookstores in the United States. And a growing proportion of these stores is owned by individuals from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2022-06-17 15:44:11 UTC ]
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Executive directors at regional bookseller associations across the country believe that conditions are right for big turnouts at their in-person fall shows. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-06-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Forefront Books and the Frederick Douglass Family Initiatives are teaming up to form Frederick Douglass Books, a publishing imprint meant to “establish a pathway for Black and Brown authors” into the publishing industry, the two organizations announced in a press release last week. The imprint... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-06-16 13:04:40 UTC ]
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