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Indlæser... A World of Letters: Yale University Press, 1908-2008af Nicholas A. Basbanes
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For Yale University Press, which celebrates its hundredth birthday in 2008, the century has been an eventful one, punctuated with no few surprises. The Press has published more than 8,000 volumes through the years, scores of bestsellers and award-winners among them, and these books have come to fruition through the efforts of a host of colorful authors, editors, directors, board members, and others of intellectual and literary renown. With an ear always cocked for an interesting tale, one of today's best storytellers presents an anecdote-rich chronicle of the Press's first 100 years. Nicholas Basbanes, whom David McCullough has called "the leading authority of books about books," quickly convinces us that the Press's history, while bookish, is also lively and fascinating. Basbanes explores the saga behind the acquisition of Eugene O'Neill's blockbuster play, the all-time Yale bestseller Long Day's Journey into Night; the controversy sparked in 1965 by publication of The Vinland Map; the origins of the groundbreaking Annals of Communism series, initiated in the wake of the Soviet Union's demise; and many more highlights from Press annals. Basbanes looks at the reasons behind the publisher's remarkable financial success, and he completes A World of Letters with a glimpse at the new initiatives that will propel the Press into a second exciting century. No library descriptions found. |
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Basbanes begins by providing a very brief overview of the university press concept as it has been practiced in England (for more than five centuries) and in America (since 1878, with the establishment of Johns Hopkins University Press), but quickly hones in on Yale. In just four chapters, the author manages to offer up short profiles of the major figures in the press' history, an overview of its governance structure, an examination of its main series publications and successful publications (including its many award-winners and several of the surprise bestsellers it has released). Basbanes also discusses the role of the press' London branch, a full-scale editorial office (established in 1961).
Most instructive to those interested in other things than the arcana of the history of a specific publisher (fascinating in their own right to me, at least) are Basbanes' reflections on Yale's continuing financial successes (it is one of very few university presses which doesn't operate on a deficit) and on its strategies for the future (in an era of continuing declines in sales to libraries, for example), as the press looks to remain an essential element of American publishing for the next century and beyond.
Basbanes' keen sense of narrative is on display here, and he (mostly) resisted the urge to simply offer up lists of past works and editorial accomplishments (there is some of that, and rightly so, but it doesn't overpower the story). The book's relatively short length (196 pages) is a strength; with that, the tale can be told, but not in such great depth as to turn off the casual reader.
A suitable addition to both the Basbanes canon and to Yale's ever-growing list of excellent publications.
http://philobiblos.blogspot.com/2009/01/book-review-world-of-letters.html ( )