Celebrating an Anniversary with Saul Bellow and Arthur Miller

"Every season provides wonderful opportunities to reach new readers and to come back to why Penguin Classics are not only timeless, but also timely," said Elda Rotor, associate publisher and editorial director of Penguin Classics. With Penguin Classics turning 70 next summer, the imprint plans a year-long celebration that will coincide with several other anniversaries and centennials.

Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is turning 150 years old, and on July 7 Penguin Classics published a new 150th anniversary edition, with an introduction and supplemental material by author and Carroll scholar Charlie Lovett. August, meanwhile, marks the centennial of the first publication of Robert Frost's poem "The Road Not Taken," and on August 18 Penguin Classics will publish The Road Not Taken and Other Poems, a new collection of Frost's early work, edited and with an introduction by David Orr. Perhaps the two biggest centennials, though, are those of the births of Saul Bellow and Arthur Miller.

"It's not just an opportunity for people to really learn about their more popular titles, but a chance to reflect on both of their incredible creative lives," explained Rotor.

On May 12, Penguin Classics published new editions of two of Bellow's best works: a deluxe paperback edition of his National Book Award-winning novel Herzog, with an introduction by author Philip Roth, and a black spine edition of his last novel, Ravelstein, featuring an introduction by Gary Shteyngart. And on June 10, Bellow's 100th birthday, Penguin Books co-hosted a Saul Bellow "Centennial Slam" at Housing Works Bookstore Cafe in New York City. Speakers at the event included New Yorker fiction editor Deborah Treisman, author Colum McCann and Bellow's long-time editor at Viking Books, Beena Kamlani.

Penguin Books plans to make this fall the "season of Arthur Miller," and in September, Penguin Classics will publish The Penguin Arthur Miller, a collection of 18 of Miller's plays spanning his entire career. The omnibus collection will come in two versions: a deluxe paperback edition and a lavish, bespoke limited edition hardcover. In addition to The Penguin Arthur Miller, new centennial editions of his plays The Price and Incident at Vichy, among other plays, are also being released.

Rotor emphasized the importance of introducing new readers, especially young people, to both Bellow and Miller. "We should return to these individuals," said Rotor. "Classics survive only by their readers." --Alex Mutter

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