Important news! Alma Classics!

It's been some time since our last post and the reason for this is that we've been busy revamping Oneworld Classics and launching the new imprint Alma Classics!

In Spring 2007 Alessandro Gallenzi and Elisabetta Minervini, founders of Alma Books, launched Oneworld Classics in partnership with the directors of Oneworld Publications, Juliet Mabey and Novin Doostdar. During these five years Oneworld Classics took on the legendary Calder Publications list (founded in 1949) and launched a new music imprint Overture Publishing.

We are now delighted to announce that Alma Books has acquired Oneworld Classics and will be rebranding this amazing collection as Alma Classics. Apart from revamping these much loved titles and breathing new life into them we will also continue the Oneworld Classics mission, publishing not only the greatest masterpieces of all time but also making available unjustly neglected works of enduring significance.

Elisabetta Minervini, Alma Books’ Publisher, says: “We are really thrilled to welcome the classics into the Alma home. We like the idea of creating a dialogue between contemporary and classic authors. It will strengthen our desire to create a community of people who love literature. It is our plan to go back to the ideals that moved us when we started working in publishing: beautiful books lovingly produced; carefully selected texts of great classics from world literature, offered in new translations. Some of the new editions will be published in hardback, while other titles will be given a contemporary look with the aim of bringing these wonderful books to new readers.”

Alessandro Gallenzi, Alma Books’ Managing Director, says: "We would like to thank Novin and Juliet for helping us to set it up and being such supportive partners. It has been a pleasure to work with them, and we wish them every success in the development of their Oneworld Publications list.”

Alma Classics will continue the publishing program set by Oneworld Classics for Spring 2012 but significant changes will happen in the latter half of the year when we plan to launch new editions of bestselling titles with new covers and extra material. Most of the Oneworld Classics titles are still available for purchase however in the next three years Alma Classics will gradually replace them with new volumes.

Show us your support and post us a message on facebook and twitter!

Kick-starting 2012

In spite of the Olympics buzz not many are optimistic about 2012 and the howling weather isn't helping much but we're hoping to start positive and prepare for some major changes this year.

To kick-start 2012 Oneworld Classics is running two competitions for UK residents, everyone who creates a free online account on our website automatically has a chance to win a set of five bestselling Oneworld Classics titles (worth over £50):
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
Dearest Father by Franz Kafka
Death on Credit by Louis-Ferdinand Celine
Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio
Exercises in Style by Raymond Queneau
No purchase or payment is necessary, simply log in now! Offer ends 29th February 2012.

We are also offering a set of our 10 Overture Opera Guides (worth £120!) plus a one-year free subscription to Opera Now magazine.
The set will include all the titles Overture have published so far:
Tosca by Giacomo Puccini
Idomeneo by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
La bohéme by Giacomo Puccini
Don Giovanni by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Parsifal by Richard Wagner
A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Benjamin Britten
Simon Boccanegra by Giuseppe Verdi
Le nozze di Figaro by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Eugene Onegin by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Der Fliegende Holländer by Richard Wagner
To win simply tell us which opera you would like to see covered by Overture Opera Guides? Email your answer to competition@oneworldclassics.com (competition ends 15th February 2012).

For Alma Books we have decided to extend our Christmas Gift promotion and are giving every customer who makes a purchase from our website a free surprise book (valid for UK residents only, offer end 31st January).

Both websites currently have a 40% discount for every online order for January only, so this is the last chance to purchase some amazing titles at low prices.

We hope this is the start of many competitions and offers to come during the rest of the year.

Happy New Year everyone!

London's Best Bookshop

Our congratulations go out to The Calder Bookshop & Theatre who have won this year's award for London's Best Bookshop by London Magazine, especially considering that among the other nominations were Daunts Books in Marylebone, Lutyens and Rubinstein in Notting Hill and the London Review Bookshop in Bloomsbury.

The Calder Bookshop was founded by publishing legend John Calder and specialises in literary fiction, poetry and drama. In 2010 it become The Calder Bookshop & Theatre hosting a variety of discussions, literary readings, film showings, music events and theatre performances. Visit their website www.calderbookshop.com to find out about latest events and pop in to flick through some extraordinary titles.

The Calder Bookshop & Theatre
51 The Cut, London, SE1 8LF
Telephone: 020 7620 2900
info@calderbookshop.com
www.calderbookshop.com

Where are all the Christmas parties?

Over the past few years December has always looked like a minefield – the calendar was chock-full of Christmas dinners and parties. This year we looked at our diaries and the only invitation was from the Elvis Presley Society of Great Britain, which unfortunately we had to turn down as it clashes with Advent Service at our kids' school. Either we have suddenly become personae non gratae or the publishing world has run out of money.

Luckily enough, Italians are not daunted by the crisis and are in as festive a mood as ever (remember the good old days of the Credit Crunch? Sigh. We are now officially in recession until further notice). So it will be a good year for turkeys – and for us there will be a lot of Prosecco, lasagna and panettone.

Cin cin!

The Slowest Order

I had lunch with an author at our favourite local restaurant today and, just as we were about to order our food and drinks, a Spanish family of four sat next to us. I found it difficult to talk to my author, as the Spaniards kept reading, translating and commenting the menu. The negotiations carried on until our food was served, then they started joking. We got our coffee and I asked for the bill. When I was walking out of the restaurant, they signalled the waitress that they were ready to order.

The Fastest Reader in the World

Coming back on the train from Hull today, where I attended the launch of our Lightship Anthology yesterday, I sat next to the fastest reader I have ever met in my life. We left Doncaster at around 11:00am. I noticed that the woman was reading a book by Michael Connelly – I don't know which one because the publisher doesn't use running headers. I saw she was on Chapter 5 when I sat next to her. Ten minutes later I happen to glance over my shoulder and saw she was at the beginning of Chapter 11. "That can't be right," I thought. So I tried to time her reading and realized that she could read 2 pages in 25 seconds, and 4 pages in 50 seconds. Obviously she was quicker when there was dialogue – and they were fairly normal pages of around 250 words each. When we reached Kings Cross she was on page 300 or something, only around 150 pages to go – about half an hour. I am green with envy, having managed to get through only about 50 manuscript pages in the same time.

* * *

A Greek, an Italian and a Portuguese go to the pub and get something to drink. Who pays?

The German.

The trials and pleasures of a Oneworld Classics’ intern

In between stuffing hundreds of envelopes with our catalogues to send out to our avid readers, I’ve somehow managed to significantly educate myself about two of the most exciting operas around: Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro and Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin. The bright yellow Le nozze di Figaro guide is one of the thickest in the series and there is certainly no shortage of material, including alternative ariettas written for the librettist’s mistress, a whistle-stop tour in how to analyze recitative, and a performance history where the author definitely does not lack choice! The guide traces the history from Mozart’s original inspiration by the acerbic Beaumarchais play commenting on French society right through to the twenty-first century productions that seem to favour jocks, celebrity culture and fast cars.

Learning about the tragic antihero Eugene Onegin has been just as rewarding, not least because of my first, rather underwhelming, exposure to the opera. My parents took me to a rather drab local production when I was far too young for it, but, reading about the plot, the characters, and the live wire of emotions that underscores the music and the drama of it all, I still can’t understand how, even aged 11, I managed to be bored by it! Even in the more academic history of the work, I was surprised by the huge variety of interpretations that have been produced, despite most managing to stay loyal to the rural folk setting that is so key to the characters’ inevitable fates.

Discovering the in-depth histories behind these operas combined with a pre-existing love for their music has certainly whet my appetite for ENO’s season. Fiona Shaw, who directs The Marriage of Figaro, demonstrates physically all the madness of the plot in this ‘Folle Journée’ using a revolving stage – watch her discuss it on the Andrew Marr Show here. I’m especially excited to see Eugene Onegin as it features tenor Toby Spence, a personal idol of mine.

Imogen Sebba

Intern