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 ]
The first hour of the day in a children’s bookstore is chock full of challenges. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-03-04 13:00:00 UTC ]
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The worldwide system of Penguin Random House, world's largest book publisher, has pulled out of London Book Fair amid the mounting COVID-19 outbreak. The post Coronavirus: Penguin Random House Pulls out of London Book Fair appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2020-03-03 16:18:52 UTC ]
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Penguin Random House has today withdrawn from the London Book Fair, following the move made by Hachette Livre earlier in the day. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-02 23:26:51 UTC ]
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A bookseller fights the urge to require parents to check their cell phones at the door during story time. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-03-02 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon has pulled out of the London Book Fair, as the US businesses of HarperCollins and Hachette have joined Simon & Schuster, Macmillan and Penguin Random House in withdrawing a number of their rights staff from the London Book Fair amid the coronavirus outbreak, adding pressure on the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-01 20:42:21 UTC ]
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Booker shortlisted author and former Blackwell's bookseller Daisy Johnson has joined the judging panel for the Vintage Independent Bookseller of the Year Award 2020. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-27 22:21:00 UTC ]
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There’s no bigger global news story right now than the slow but intractable spread of coronavirus, which has been hobbling the normal ebb and flow of everything from the stock market to cruises, theme parks and tourism. The virus has affected the publishing industry as well, and there’s perhaps... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-02-26 17:39:37 UTC ]
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“I have worlds of things to tell you, and my pen is not swift enough to answer my purpose at all.” A glimpse inside the best summer of Emily Dickinson’s life. | Lit Hub Emily Temple watched 2oth-century bookstore classic You’ve Got Mail for the first time ever, and has VERY strong feelings about... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-02-26 11:30:27 UTC ]
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Penguin Random House is publishing a new cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi in September, written alongside Ixta Belfrage: Ottolenghi Flavour. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-26 00:45:48 UTC ]
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A court in eastern China has sentenced a Swedish seller of books that took a skeptical look at the ruling Communist Party to 10 years in prison for "illegally providing intelligence overseas," in a further sign of Beijing's hard line toward its... Continue reading at CBC
[ CBC | 2020-02-25 13:14:25 UTC ]
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Mr. Gui, a Chinese-born Swedish citizen, ran a publishing house that appeared to anger the Communist Party Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-02-25 10:07:44 UTC ]
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Gui Minhai, a Chinese-born Swedish citizen, ran a publishing house that appeared to anger the Communist Party Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-02-25 06:02:16 UTC ]
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Hong Kong bookseller Gui Minhai has been jailed for 10 years by a Chinese court for “illegally providing intelligence overseas”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-24 22:55:21 UTC ]
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The door of Los Angeles’ newest bookstore is propped open on a quiet section of Hollywood Boulevard, the front window displaying books on a handmade wooden bookshelf. Inside the front room, you’ll find more books and merchandise below a neon light thought bubble and a sign that reads, “I still... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-02-21 15:00:52 UTC ]
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Pearson’s 25% stake in Penguin Random House earned the company £65 million in operating profit in 2019. Pearson has sold its 25% share of PRH to Bertelsmann in a deal expected to generated net proceeds of $675 million when the transaction closes. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-02-21 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Among this week’s notable deals is the seven-figure sale of a debut novel titled The Other Black Girl. The send-up of the publishing industry, by a former Knopf assistant editor, was pitched as Get Out meets Younger. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-02-21 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Publisher Eva Bonnier and author David Lagercrantz are among the signatories of an open letter calling for the release of Gui Minhai, a bookseller imprisoned in China. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-20 16:34:50 UTC ]
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Penguin Random House Children's is publishing Breathless, a new "personal" and "achingly romantic" YA novel by Jennifer Niven, in paperback this autumn. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-19 14:05:27 UTC ]
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A humorous behind-the-scenes look at bookseller prep for an author school visit. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-02-19 13:00:00 UTC ]
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When Jokha al-Harthi and Marilyn Booth won the Man Booker International Prize last year, for Booth’s translation of Sayyidat al-Qamr (Celestial Bodies), many hurried to note that al-Harthi was the “first Omani woman writer” to have a book in English translation.While true, this may give the... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2020-02-19 10:26:57 UTC ]
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