Penguin's withdrawal of The Hindus causes international outcry

Major writers including Arundhati Roy and Neil Gaiman condemn 'egregious' suppression of Wendy Doniger's book under pressure from Hindu nationalistsMajor authors from Arundhati Roy to William Dalrymple and Neil Gaiman have condemned Penguin's controversial removal of Wendy Doniger's book The Hindus from circulation in India, a withdrawal which has been described as an "egregious violation of free speech" and "deplorable" by the international literary community.The decision is "shocking, appalling, dreadful and entirely negative," Dalrymple told the Guardian, while Roy, the Booker prize-winning author of The God of Small Things, has called on Penguin to explain why it "caved in". Doniger's widely praised book was pulled from India following a lawsuit from the Hindu group Shiksha Bachao Andolan accusing the University of Chicago professor of "hurt[ing] the religious feelings of millions of Hindus" – a violation of the Indian penal code which prohibits "deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings or any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs". The lawsuit, which also says Doniger's book is "a shallow, distorted and non-serious presentation of Hinduism" which is "riddled with heresies and factual inaccuracies", has been played out over the last four years, and according to the petitioner's lawyer, earlier this week publisher Penguin agreed to withdraw the book, and to pulp copies.The move immediately triggered an avalanche of protest.... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2014-02-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Female authors heralded on International Women's Day

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Tue, 08/03/2011 - 08:40 Inspiring books by and about women are being hailed for International Women's Day, as J K Rowling and Germaine Greer are named among 17 authors on the Guardian's Top 100 Inspirational Women list. Female novelists are holding... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin to treble investment in digital content

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Mon, 07/03/2011 - 09:03 Penguin is to treble its investment in digital content in 2011 compared to 2010, as both Pearson and Bloomsbury cited a leap in digital sales as a key reason for growth in their interim full-year results, released last... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin has best-ever year as Pearson profits leap

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Mon, 28/02/2011 - 09:42 Penguin UK had its best ever year in 2010 as parent company Pearson reported a profits increase of 21% to £857m. For the year ending 31st December, sales at Pearson were £5.66bn, up 10% on 2009. Sales at Penguin were... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin and Hachette win at PPC awards

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Wed, 16/02/2011 - 07:00 Penguin and Hachette were the big winners at the Publishers Publicity Circle awards, each coming away with three awards. The ceremony was held at Dolada in central London last night (15th February); the awards are given to the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A World of Recipes: The International Cookbook Market

As the Paris Cookbook Fair gets underway next month, cookbook publishers are getting ready to do some shopping--and not just the sort that involves stocking up on Dijon mustard and bonbons from Fauchon. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-02-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin Children's Books creates new licensing wing

Written By: Benedicte Page A new Media and Entertainment group has been created within Penguin Children’s Books under newly promoted publishing director Eric Huang. The group combines the BBC Children's, Sunbird and Ladybird licensing teams. Penguin Children's Books m.d. Francesca Dow said... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin enters exclusive Sainsburys book club

Written By: Charlotte Williams Penguin has been appointed the exclusive publisher for Sainsbury's Book Club, providing all titles in the promotion between July 2011 and July 2012. Authors set to feature in the club include Marian Keyes, Clive Cussler, Jeff Kinney and Rick Riordan, with exact... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-01-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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