The Time of Their Lives

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What to expect

In this love song to book publishing, Silverman offers a fascinating chronicle of the industry’s golden age, an era that began after World War II and lasted for over three decades. Relying on the eyes, ears, and memories of more than 120 notable publishing figures, including Alfred Knopf, the Doubleday fathers and sons, and the Thornhills of Little, Brown and Company, the author offers an intimate history of never-before-told stories about how some of the most important books in postwar America came into being. He pays particular homage to the era’s talented horde of editors, who offer marvelous stories about their authors, including Barney Rosset whose Grove Press freed such banned authors as D. H. Lawrence and Henry Miller. Silverman illuminates a period in publishing that formed a distinguishing landmark of culture in American life.

Critics Review

  • “This is a wonderful book, filled with anecdotal treasures.”

    New York Times

  • “Of course, Al Silverman is both a ‘bookman’ par excellence and also the ultimate publishing insider, so it almost goes without saying that he is exactly the right person to write the story of book publishing since the Second World War, in the now bygone age of independent publishers and bigger-than-life editors.”

    Michael Korda, author of Charmed Lives

  • “In a difficult publishing era, it’s a delight to share these recollections of the days before Wall Street ruled Publishers Row.”

    Publishers Weekly

  • “Narrator Tom Weiner reads at a brisk pace, with his baritone voice never dropping a word.”

    AudioFile

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