On July 30th, 1935, Penguin Books Published the first (as we know them) Paperbacks!
Ahhh paperbacks. The preferred format for many a reader. Hardcover books are large and heavy, but a paperback slides easily into a purse, tote, or pocket. Lighter and more affordable than its hardcover brethren, it is the also the affordable option for many.
There was a time that good literature was not easily obtained by the average person. Books were large, intricately bound, expensive, and sold mostly in upscale bookstores. Affordable options were poor quality in both writing and physical composition.
Ironically, we have a publishing executive's inability to find a good book in a train station bookstall to thank for the quality, ease and affordability we enjoy today.
Sir Allen Lane, the chairman of the British publishing house Bodley Head, was returning from a weekend visiting Agatha Christie's country estate, when he searched the bookstall in the train station for something to read on the long trip ahead. Frustrated by the lack of quality options, he spent his time considering a way to make good literature affordable and more widely available.
When Bodley
Head allowed him to proceed but declined to finance the project, Allen
Lane financed the project himself, and called the new line Penguin. He
acquired the rights to reprint ten literary titles (You can view the
complete list Here).
His plan was to sell the much cheaper format, at low margin, but high
volume. To break even, 17, 000 copies of each book needed to be sold.
He set off in search of retail buyers. Woolworth's ordered 63, 500
copes, telling Lane his business plan was solid. Penguin books was
born. 3 million copies were sold the first year. Penguin separated from Bodley Head, becoming its own entity in 1936.
The color coded block design and familiar, friendly looking penguin are still instantly recognizable today.
On July 1, 2013 Penguin and Random House merged to become the global publishing powerhouse Penguin Random House.
Happy Reading,
Christine
