Archaeologists in Print by Amara Thornton

Author:Amara Thornton [Thornton, Amara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Juvenile Nonfiction, Social Science, Archaeology, Literary Criticism, Comparative Literature, Language Arts & Disciplines, Publishing, General, Young Adult Nonfiction, Books & Reading
ISBN: 9781787352575
Google: 89xgDwAAQBAJ
Barnesnoble:
Goodreads: 39105920
Publisher: UCL Press
Published: 2018-06-25T00:00:00+00:00

The first archaeological Pelicans

Four years later, when Allen Lane started Penguin Books, he depended on agreements with other publishers to provide the books needed for repackaging and republication as a Penguin paperback. For fiction, he began with a list from the publisher Jonathan Cape, settling on an agreement in which Lane paid Cape an advance and royalties from sales.14 By 1936 Lane had expanded into other genres, each with its own colour: green striped Crime, cerise Travel and Adventure, dark blue Memoirs and Biography. There was also ‘Penguin Shakespeare’. Unlike other publishing houses, Penguin did not depend on newspaper advertisements for its books; rather, J. M. Morpurgo argued, readers bought on the strength of the Penguin brand directly from the booksellers, with the bold design of Penguin paperbacks proving a strong visual attraction. The small team of editors working alongside Lane at the beginning of the company’s history were responsible for selecting published books that would make suitable Penguins.15

Once established, Penguin began producing a catalogue/magazine, Penguins Progress, containing reviews of published works alongside its publication listings and advertisements for bespoke reader’s services. These included a ‘subscription scheme’ through booksellers, enabling readers to receive the latest publications for quarterly payments of 5 shillings. They could also acquire ‘limp-cloth’-covered editions of their books to prevent cover damage through use.16 With a short article titled ‘Enter Pelicans’, Penguins Progress introduced the new series in its May 1937 issue. Aspirational Penguin readers were now offered a chance to expand their intellectual horizons past their daily routines of work and leisure, by owning rather than borrowing the books that would enable them to accomplish that expansion. This knowledge, coming direct from eminent scholars and hitherto accessible only to the wealthy, was being laid at their fingertips.17

Perceived public knowledge of authorial expertise drove the selection of the first 10 titles published as Pelicans – it was imperative not to put off the reading public with indigestible writing.18 Penguins Progress gave Woolley’s Digging a brief profile, highlighting both its presentation of an ancient past as revealed through excavation and the scientific methods used on site.19 A short article on Bell’s Letters appeared in Penguins Progress in Spring 1939, drawing readers’ attention to Bell’s edited correspondence as a fitting representation of her remarkable life.20

For authors, getting their book into Penguin was a desirable outcome. Although initially authors did not benefit financially from a Penguin contract, ultimately the firm’s visibility and availability were worth it – Penguin books were stocked in bookshops, Woolworth’s Stores and railway stations across the UK and beyond.21 As the success of Lane’s experiment in paperback publishing became more established, publishers began to open their lists to Lane, ensuring their authors had full advantage of the wide readership reached by Penguin/Pelican, as well as the potential for increased sales of their hardback editions. Sales figures for Penguins were estimated at around 40,000 books per year for most titles.22 When Woolley’s Digging was published a committee of four were responsible for selecting Pelican books: Vengalil Krishna

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