Litterbury

Well, old news really, but better late than never.  Actually, it’s something that has managed to drift under the radar to my knowledge, and I see it as my duty to inform other book lovers, as I would certainly appreciate the info.

Penguin books has now released a new sub-series of hardcover bound books from the Penguin Classics imprint.  Initially, eight titles were released in late October, 2009, and all feature jacket design work by Coralie Bickford-Smith.  Smith’s website states that she’s “a senior cover designer at Penguin Books, where she has created several series designs,” and that she studied typography at Reading University.   Smith deserves credit, as it’s a very good-looking line, and all retail for $20.00; but Amazon has them at reduced prices running at about $13.50ish.

I’ve yet to get any hands-on time with any of the books, but clearly I want them, or, at least, some of them.  I’m actually quite a fan of Penguin Classics, and for many, many years it was the specific label that I looked for as it resonated with me as an affordable, not to mention accessible library of genuine merit.  The books cut a large swath through the literary canon, capturing the great works of English-speaking countries, but all the important and recognized works of places such as France and Russia, not to mention ages old historical works from past civilizations such as that of the ancient Greeks.

The House of Penguin, in my opinion, has always centered around their classics.  Do they publish current literature from contemporary authors? I’m sure they do, but I’ll be damned if I can think of even one their new releases.  All I know is that I hunted down that little penguin logo for years and it rarely ever let me down.  Affordable, literate and stylish looking for the shelf; my only complaint was that they were only cheap little paperbacks and some of my best-loved Penguin Classics over the years have turned yellow, and grown very tattered.

(pic. 1_Never has Dangerous Liaisons been such a faithful companion; that little paperback is the most well-worn book in my whole library.)

Now Peguin has taken a marvelous step in the right direction, but my enthusiasm has been somewhat dampened a bit.  Granted, the books themselves look fantastic, and Coralie Bickford-Smith has shown a real knack at making the editions elegant, but with a little bit of an edge over plainer releases.   If the books contain the attention to detail that I’ve always revered in Penguin, then I’ll be pleased.  What I’ve dreamed of for years is some of my favorite releases from them, just simply hardbound.

(pic. 2_One of the new Penguin Classics hardback editions; gorgeous design.)

Will I get my favorites? I don’t know, and that’s where my enthusiasm has really died down a bit.  The selection is bland, with nary a surprise in sight.

The first wave of releases from 2009 is as follows:

Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens

Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte

Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen

Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen (two Austens!)

Tess Of The D’Urbervilles, by Thomas Hardy

The Picture Of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde

Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte

and Cranford, by Elizabeth Gaskell

Amazon has pre-order listings set to hit March 10th, 2010, as follows:

Emma, by Jane Austen (a third!)

Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson

Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass, by Lewis Carroll

The Odyssey, by Homer

and Lady Chatterley’s Lover, by D. H. Lawrence

(pic. 3_Homer’s The Odyssey, albeit, the Rieu translation.)

Amazon also has further listings that look like they will release on September 28, 2010:

Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott

The Hound Of The Baskervilles, by Arthur Conan Doyle

Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens

and (in a surprising twist) The Woman In White, by Wilkie Collins

I’m not trying to make a point that any one of the selections isn’t a worthwhile read, but each entry is so by-the-book, if you will, that there isn’t really anything that can’t be picked up in a superior version from something like the Everyman’s Library.  It’s a lot of Jane Austen and Charles Dickens, and some obvious picks like the Jane Eyre and Dorian Gray.  The lone surprise for me is the inclusion of the seemingly little known Woman In White by Wilkie Collins.  I’m also a little surprised at the inclusion of Lady Chatterley’s Lover, as I can think of far more deserving books to be honored from the list of Penguin Classics.

One thing that Penguin seems to do better than any other publishing firm is they seem to either seek out or acquire some of the best translations of ‘foreign’ books I think I’ve ever encountered, but even that’s a bit wasted here.  The one book that would need translating on this list would be Homer’s Odyssey, but it’s the translation done by E. V. Rieu, and while I haven’t had the pleasure of reading that version myself (it’s billed as a Penguin staple), I’m more familiar with the work done by Robert Fagles, who is also within Penguin’s reach as they published his updated versions of both Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey.  I haven’t read the second entry by Fagles, but if it’s anything like his Iliad, then I can’t imagine why Penguin would squander the opportunity to release a beautiful hardcover.  Fagles’ work is available as a deluxe-paperback boxed-set from Penguin, but it would have been nice to see it get the full treatment that it deserves.

Penguin has had a long-standing classic in their clutch with the 1961 translation of Pierre de Laclos’ Les Liaisons Dangereuses, as done by P. W. K. Stone.  Penguin recently published an updated translation by Helen Constantine (October, 2007), and I still haven’t been able to pick up a copy -yet- but I can vouch that the Stone version is incredible; I’ve been reading it for years, and despite seeing publication in the early sixties, it’s still the standard for one of literature’s greatest achievements.  What would I do to get a copy hardbound for keeps? I think I’d consider bartering my very soul, if that’s what it took.  It’s clearly one of the best offerings from Penguin and it’s existence alone puts it’s entire division ahead of everyone else.  (If Penguin happens to read this and wants to grant me my special wish, I’ll send an e-mail attached with my bloody heart and even do carnal tricks to seal it up.  Not kidding.)

(pic. 4_New Penguin edition of Jane Eyre; Jane Eyre really is one of the best books ever.)

And then there’s quite possibly my other biggest wish from Penguin to include Dumas’ The Count Of Monte Cristo in their new line.  Monte Cristo is a bit of a complicated affair, because as often as it’s remembered, people either identify with it through film adaptations (horrors!) or the more commonly acquired abridgments that slice the narrative in half (greater horrors!).  A more complete and updated translation by Robin Buss was published in 1996, and while it’s page-count clocks in at almost 1250, I can attest to the fact that there isn’t a wasted page in the entire volume.  Some time ago I purchased the fairly new Everyman’s edition, that while very striking on the shelf and is a pleasure to read and hold, I’ll still reach for the Penguin version more times than not, as I’ve decided that I’ll settle for Buss and nothing else.

Buss also did another Dumas work in 2006 with The Women’s War, an excellent, though lesser known Dumas book and Penguin saw fit to include it in their own line of Classics then.  Wouldn’t a hardcover release be something of a pleasant surprise? And isn’t it a wasted opportunity to pass over real exclusives and to merely release what every other publisher already does? Not that Penguin doesn’t have missteps, and I’ve written in great (perhaps unnerving) detail about what I think of the Richard Pevear translation of The Three Musketeers (stick with Oxford), but I’ve found it rare that Penguin ever brings in a questionable translation in all the years that I’ve been reading them; there’s been a few, but not many.

That’s why it disappoints me that from all the wonderful works that Penguin could choose from, they do the obvious, and start reaching for Austen and Dickens, incidentally two authors who never have to fear going out of print from now to eternity.  Why not make use of Monte Cristo and Dangerous Liaisons when they can’t be offered up by anyone else? It does seem wasteful.

And then I have my second complaint.

I can think of a few publishers who have made it a point to print their hardcovers on acid-free paper: chiefly, Everyman’s Library and the Library of America, but I believe that Modern Library makes a consistent effort here as well.  The usage of acid-free paper is to prevent the yellow discoloring and, often, pre-mature aging of a book, and anyone who has a library full of paperbacks knows exactly what I’m referring to.

Wikipedia has a whole page devoted to acid-free paper, but basically defines it as a “paper that has a neutral or basic pH (7 or slightly greater).”

I’m not exactly sure when I became aware of the usage, or it’s apparent importance, but it now factors into my decision-making process greatly when I purchase a book, and I tend to be disappointed if it’s not factored into my latest acquisition.  As a result, I’m picking up more and more titles specifically from Everyman’s and Library of America, but I’ve been long frustrated that I have more than a few editions of certain books that feature inferior translation work, and have secretly longed for Penguin to do a real deluxe line.  Sadly, the new Penguin hardcovers don’t appear to make use of this practice.

They do, however, seem to be a bit more green friendly, which I can also respect.  The copyright page on the new line states, “Penguin Books is committed to a sustainable future for our business, our readers and out planet.  The book in your hands is made from paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.” A logo is also included which states ‘mixed sources.’  Are the two practices of being environmentally friendly and using acid-free paper mutually exclusive? I’m not sure, but it would be nice to merge the two for any given book line.

(pic. 5_An old Penguin paperback, greatly loved.)

Still, I’m pleased to see Penguin make a bit of a jump with a real hardcover line for it’s classics library.  The design work looks fantastic, and, whore that I am, makes one or two purchases necessary, bank account willing.  I’m hopeful that the selection will improve, and that Penguin will use the line to differentiate itself from what other publishers are doing, perhaps even giving a few looked over works a better chance at standing out in stores, but that also means steering away from Dickens and Austen, and taking a risk on equally, if not better, books that have already received the excellent Penguin touch but languish, perhaps, in niche status.  At least Penguin gets it half right so far, and will hopefully build on an exciting new brand into the coming year.

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www.penguin.com

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This entry was posted on February 23, 2010 at 7:13 am and is filed under Count of Monte Cristo, Dangerous Liaisons, Dumas with tags acid-free paper, Penguin Books, Penguin Classics Hardcovers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.