Robert Gottlieb: the editor who changed American literature

The man who ushered classics like Catch-22 into the world, Gottlieb has reason to brag. But in his new memoir Avid Reader he prefers to downplay the editor’s role Joseph Heller, the author of Catch-22, once gave an interview where he credited his editor with kicking his work into shape. After the interview ran, Heller got an irritated phone call. The caller was his editor, Robert Gottlieb. Gottlieb told Heller to knock it off. “I felt then, and still do, that readers shouldn’t be made aware of editorial interventions,” Gottlieb writes in his new memoir, Avid Reader: A Life. “They have a right to feel that what they’re reading comes direct from the author to them.”Gottlieb’s book is full of stories like that one. He is a very unassuming person, for an alleged legend – a characterization he laughs at to me, saying his daughter pokes fun at him for so often being called it. Yet beginning at Simon & Schuster in the 1950s and 1960s, flourishing at Knopf in the 1970s and 1980s, and with a brief but memorable detour to the New Yorker (as an editor), Gottlieb’s editing pen has touched the manuscripts of most of the important American writers of the 20th century – and several of the British ones, too. He did it, though, as much from behind the scenes as he possibly could. “I’ve given very few interviews,” he told me when I met him at his book-lined townhouse on New York’s East Side. He is only giving this one now, he says, because he needs to help the publisher sell his book. ... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2016-09-27 00:00:00 UTC ]

Other news stories related to: "Robert Gottlieb: the editor who changed American literature"

Two Madeley novels for S&S

Simon & Schuster has acquired two novels by broadcaster and Richard & Judy Book Club... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-03-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

S&S swoops on Flying Aces memoir

Kerri Sharp, senior commissioning editor non-fiction at Simon & Schuster, has acquired a... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-03-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

Media Decoder Blog: Amanda Knox's Ex-Boyfriend Signs Book Deal

Raffaele Sollecito, the Italian student who was dating Ms. Knox when they were both charged with murder in 2007, will write his own memoir, for an imprint of Simon & Schuster. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2012-03-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

Jessie J autobiography to S&S

Simon & Schuster has acquired the autobiography of pop star Jessie J, with plans to publish... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

E-book firms need to make changes to settle probe

(Bloomberg) - News Corp.'s HarperCollins and four other publishers probed by European Union need to address regulatory concerns before they can settle the antitrust case, the European Union's competition commissioner said. Joaquin Almunia, the antitrust chief, told reporters Monday that a... Continue reading at Crains New York

[ Crains New York | 2012-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

EU ready to settle with publishers over ebook price-fixing, but no talks yet

European Union antitrust chief Joaquin Almunia says that the Competition Commission is open to a settlement with publishers in the increasingly high-profile ebook price fixing case, but only if the companies address key regulatory issues. Almunia says regulators are coordinating with the Justice... Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2012-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

Patricia Scanlan moves from Transworld to S&S

Irish author Patricia Scanlan has left Transworld for Simon & Schuster. The novelist, who... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-03-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

Justice Department preparing Apple iBooks antitrust lawsuit

The Justice Department is reportedly preparing to go after Apple, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, Penguin, Macmillan and HarperCollins following its investigation into alleged ebook price-rigging. The case centers around a deal to switch to agency pricing, where the vendor takes a 30 percent cut... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2012-03-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

S&S acquires novel inspired by Meryl Streep

Simon & Schuster has acquired a novel called The Meryl Streep Movie Club, in which four women... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-03-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

S&S secures two from debut 'Picoult' novelist

Simon & Schuster has acquired two books from debut novelist Kimberly McCreight in a "... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

An appreciation: Barney Rosset, contemporary literature's champion

The late American publisher Barney Rosset led the charge to push back against literary puritanism, championing writers like Henry Miller and William S. Burroughs.Barney Rosset, who died Tuesday at the age of 89, was the most important American publisher of the 20th century. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-02-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this

Profits Rise Again at Simon & Schuster

Since ebooks first became a meaningful part of a publisher’s business in 2009, results at Simon & Schuster have followed a familiar pattern—a decline in revenue but an increase in earnings. Between 2009 and 2011, total sales at S&S dipped 0.7%, but adjusted operating income has jumped... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this