Penguin and the Lane Brothers : The Untold Story of a Publishing Revolution

An intimate partnership of three brothers – Allen, Richard and John Lane – lay at the heart of Penguin Books, the twentieth century’s greatest publishing house. In a spirit of daring and creative opposition, the brothers issued quality books on a massive scale and at minuscule prices – and achieved a revolution in publishing. The Lane boys did their best thinking together in bathroom board meetings, where at least one director would always be ‘mother naked’. They innovated in countless ways – in the early years, a church crypt served as their office and warehouse. Penguin was an unconventional upstart, bringing literary giants such as Agatha Christie, George Bernard Shaw, Virginia Woolf and Graham Greene to vast new audiences, and it seemed unstoppable. Yet the 1942 death of John Lane brought the troika to a halt. Allen, the enthusiastic frontman who relied on his younger brothers to drive Penguin’s success, became more erratic and suspicious over time. Ultimately, he would force Richard out of the company he had cofounded and built. A portrait of a remarkable family and a publishing powerhouse, Penguin and the Lane Brothers also explores the little known story of Richard Lane – the heart and backbone of Penguin, and its strongest influence. Richard’s experiences as a youth in Australia shaped his character and outlook; his dedication to the business was matched only by his devotion to his brothers. Relying on unprecedented access to Lane family sources, including Richard’s diaries, Penguin and the Lane Brothers sheds new light on the relationship of Allen, Richard and John, so crucial as a driver of Penguin’s spirit and success. By turns hilarious and tragic, moving and insightful, this is a groundbreaking counter-history of an unlikely publishing triumph. Shortlisted, 2015 Ashurst Business Literature Prize ‘Essential reading for all those fascinated by ‘books about books’ and about the foundation stories of great businesses.’ — Books+Publishing ‘Kells’ story is informative and entertaining, and will appeal to anyone with the slightest interest in the world of books. In more than 30 years at Penguin Australia, I never got this close to the truth about Penguin.’ — Age ‘An engaging, sharply written, and important revisionist history of a great literary institution.’ — Australian Book Review ‘If you like books about books, Kells offers a fascinating insight into literature and fraternal power plays.’ — Sunday Age ‘A fascinating, well-researched insight into publishing and booksellers’ — Herald Sun Stuart Kells is an author and antiquarian books authority. His previous book, the critically acclaimed biography of Kay Craddock, Rare , was published in 2011. He has a PhD from Monash University, and lives in Melbourne with his wife, Fiona, and daughter, Thea. A ground-breaking counter-history of Penguin Books both amusing and and with a strong new Australian aspect. How did the three Lane brothers enter publishing and build Penguin into a global powerhouse? As this new book shows, their innovation and the creative opposition among them would prove to be the companys secret weapon. The Lane boys did their best thinking together in bathroom board-meetings, where at least one director would always be mother naked. The war, though, brought tragedy for the family. John Lanes 1942 death in action during the North African landings shattered the brothers intimate partnership. Richard went on to share with Allen the leadership of one of the first global media businesses. The Lanes built a firm and a brand that became synonymous not only with paperbacks but also with a certain kind of publishing: switched-on, progressive, engaging. With its low-price, mass-distribution model, Penguin became a vast poor mans university, a proto-internet made from paper and ink. Australia featured prominently in the lives of the Lanes. Richard came to the country as a young man, and later helped establish and lead Penguin Australia, which was so successful that it enabled its UK parent to stave off bankruptcy in the 1960s and 1970s. Relying on unprecedented access to Lane family sources, including Richards diaries and other papers, Penguin and the Lane Brothers sheds new light on the relationship between Allen, Richard and John, so crucial as a driver of Penguins spirit and success. It restores the younger Lane brothers to their rightful place in the fascinating story of this unlikely publishing triumph.