Penguin Books is a British publishing house. It was founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large audiences existed for serious books. Penguin also had a significant impact on public debate in Britain, through its books on politics and the arts.
The Penguin timeline:
1915: The first Ladybird children's books published. Their low price and distinctive design are key selling points.
1935: Allen Lane publishes the first Penguin books, realising his vision to make quality books available to all at low prices. The books cost sixpence (the same as a packet of cigarettes) and are colour-coded: orange for fiction, blue for biography and green for crime. The first batch includes books by Ernest Hemingway and Agatha Christie.
1936: By March 1936 - 10 months after the company’s launch on 30 July 1935 - 1 million Penguin books have been printed.
1937: Allen Lane launches a non-fiction imprint after overhearing someone at a King’s Cross station bookstall mistakenly ask for “one of those Pelican books”. The first Pelican book is George Bernard Shaw’s The Intelligent Woman’s Guide to Socialism, Capitalism, Sovietism and Fascism.
1940: The first four Puffin Picture Books are published with the aim of helping evacuated city children adjust to life in the country. Titles such as War on Land are such a success that they are quickly followed by fiction. One title is Worzel Gummidge, which, like many of Puffin’s books, go on to become a popular TV programme.
1942: Penguin sets up the Armed Forces Book Club, to bring entertainment and comfort to soldiers cut off from friends and family.
1946: Launch of Penguin Classics with Homer’s The Odyssey, translated by E.V. Rieu, who becomes the first editor of the Penguin Classics list.
1959–60: Penguin Books faces trial under the Obscene Publications Act for publishing D.H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover.
1964: Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is published.
1969: Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar is published; a copy has been sold somewhere in the world every 30 seconds ever since.
1985: Penguin publishes Allen Carr’s The Easy Way to Stop Smoking, which becomes number 1 in the non-fiction book charts in nine countries and remains the highest-selling book on quitting smoking worldwide.
1995: Penguin launches its first website (www.penguin.co.uk) and brings out Penguin 60s to celebrate the company’s 60th anniversary.
2008: Penguin publishes its first-ever ebooks. Titles include A Room of One’s Own, King Lear and Utopia.
2009 : Kathryn Stockett’s The Help is published and goes on to sell over 7 million copies.
2010: Jamie Oliver’s 30 Minute Meals becomes the fastest selling non-fiction book ever in the UK.
2012: Penguin Ventures launches a new animated series of Peter Rabbit, which sells into 15 territories globally.
What this timeline suggest is that Penguin are the best of the best and they always have been and will continue to be for the foreseeable future. They know what sells and they always have the appropriate cover to go with it.
Covers -
The style of the books has changed over the years but if you look it hasn't changed much, all they have been doing is keeping up with the times, the covers are really timeless. Penguin being one of the biggest publishers have shown what it take to produce a beautiful and thought provoking book cover as the books have become collectors items as well as just books, one of the reasons for is because they do not over complicate anything they keep it simple and to the point, they want the audience to look further into the covers and enjoy them imagery of the covers.
1915: The first Ladybird children's books published. Their low price and distinctive design are key selling points.
1935: Allen Lane publishes the first Penguin books, realising his vision to make quality books available to all at low prices. The books cost sixpence (the same as a packet of cigarettes) and are colour-coded: orange for fiction, blue for biography and green for crime. The first batch includes books by Ernest Hemingway and Agatha Christie.
1936: By March 1936 - 10 months after the company’s launch on 30 July 1935 - 1 million Penguin books have been printed.
1937: Allen Lane launches a non-fiction imprint after overhearing someone at a King’s Cross station bookstall mistakenly ask for “one of those Pelican books”. The first Pelican book is George Bernard Shaw’s The Intelligent Woman’s Guide to Socialism, Capitalism, Sovietism and Fascism.
1940: The first four Puffin Picture Books are published with the aim of helping evacuated city children adjust to life in the country. Titles such as War on Land are such a success that they are quickly followed by fiction. One title is Worzel Gummidge, which, like many of Puffin’s books, go on to become a popular TV programme.
1942: Penguin sets up the Armed Forces Book Club, to bring entertainment and comfort to soldiers cut off from friends and family.
1946: Launch of Penguin Classics with Homer’s The Odyssey, translated by E.V. Rieu, who becomes the first editor of the Penguin Classics list.
1959–60: Penguin Books faces trial under the Obscene Publications Act for publishing D.H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover.
1964: Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is published.
1969: Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar is published; a copy has been sold somewhere in the world every 30 seconds ever since.
1985: Penguin publishes Allen Carr’s The Easy Way to Stop Smoking, which becomes number 1 in the non-fiction book charts in nine countries and remains the highest-selling book on quitting smoking worldwide.
1995: Penguin launches its first website (www.penguin.co.uk) and brings out Penguin 60s to celebrate the company’s 60th anniversary.
2008: Penguin publishes its first-ever ebooks. Titles include A Room of One’s Own, King Lear and Utopia.
2009 : Kathryn Stockett’s The Help is published and goes on to sell over 7 million copies.
2010: Jamie Oliver’s 30 Minute Meals becomes the fastest selling non-fiction book ever in the UK.
2012: Penguin Ventures launches a new animated series of Peter Rabbit, which sells into 15 territories globally.
What this timeline suggest is that Penguin are the best of the best and they always have been and will continue to be for the foreseeable future. They know what sells and they always have the appropriate cover to go with it.
Covers -
The style of the books has changed over the years but if you look it hasn't changed much, all they have been doing is keeping up with the times, the covers are really timeless. Penguin being one of the biggest publishers have shown what it take to produce a beautiful and thought provoking book cover as the books have become collectors items as well as just books, one of the reasons for is because they do not over complicate anything they keep it simple and to the point, they want the audience to look further into the covers and enjoy them imagery of the covers.
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