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| Founded | 1914 (United Kingdom) 1976 (Australian arm) |
|---|---|
| Founder | Stanley Unwin |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Headquarters location | Crows Nest, New South Wales, Australia |
| Distribution | United Book Distributors (Australia) Atlantic Books (UK adult) Murdoch Books (UK children's) Trafalgar Square Publishing (North America, China) APD Singapore (Singapore) Wild Dog Press (South Africa)[1] |
| Publication types | Books |
| Imprints | Arena, Crows Nest, House of Books, Inspired Living,Murdoch Books, Pier 9 |
| Official website | www |
George Allen & Unwin is a British publishing company formed in 1911 whenSir Stanley Unwin purchased a controlling interest in George Allen & Co. It became one of the leading publishers of the twentieth century and established an Australian subsidiary in 1976. In 1990 Allen & Unwin was sold toHarperCollins, and the Australian branch was the subject of amanagement buy-out.
George Allen & Sons was established in 1871 byGeorge Allen, with the backing ofJohn Ruskin,[2] becoming George Allen & Co. Ltd. in 1911 when it merged withSwan Sonnenschein and then George Allen & Unwin on 4 August 1914 as a result of Stanley Unwin's purchase of a controlling interest.[3] Frank Arthur Mumby and Frances Helena Swan Stallybrass,[4] Unwin's sonRayner S. Unwin and his nephew Philip helped him to run the company, which published works byBertrand Russell,Arthur Waley,Roald Dahl,Lancelot Hogben andThor Heyerdahl. It became well known asJ. R. R. Tolkien's publisher some time after publishing the popular children's fantasy novelThe Hobbit in 1937, and itshigh fantasy sequelThe Lord of the Rings novel in 1954–1955. Book series published by the firm in this period included theMuirhead Library of Philosophy and Unwin Books, a paperback imprint.[5]
Rayner Unwin retired at the end of 1985, and the firm was amalgamated in 1986 withBell & Hyman to form Unwin Hyman Ltd., with Robin Hyman as chief executive. From this time "Allen & Unwin" continued only as the name of the Australian subsidiary of Unwin Hyman. Rayner Unwin returned for a while as part-time chairman of Unwin Hyman, retiring again at the end of 1988. It was over the objections of Rayner Unwin, the largestshareholder, that in 1990 Hyman sold the firm to HarperCollins.[6][7] HarperCollins has since sold Unwin Hyman's academic book list toRoutledge.
When Allen & Unwin began publishing paperbacks in the 1960s they did so in an imprintUnwin Books - this mass market sell through subsidiary became a key publisher in the nascent alternative culture of the 1960s through the publication of books on philosophy and politics including Marx, Trotsky, Freud,Alan Wood, Zen Buddhism and Yoga, and literature of the far east notably the Chinese translations ofArthur Waley, Russian and Indian writers and the work of Tolkien. Each book in the series was numbered and through the 60s each book contained a full list of the other titles numbering in excess of 80.
A separate numbered listUnwin University Book was launched in 1962 comprising academic titles beginning with Barbara Wootton'sThe Social Foundations of Wage Policy.
In the 1970s a further list was formed,Unicorn Books, around the posthumous publications of Tolkien, supported by a series of other fantasy works by other authors includingLord Dunsany.
Allen & Unwin Australia Pty Ltd became independent in July 1990 by means of a management buy-out after the UK firm was bought byHarperCollins. Now known simply as "Allen & Unwin", the company went on to become the most successful "independent" publisher in Australia. It currently publishes up to 250 new titles a year. Among the many authors published by Allen & Unwin areAlex Miller,Christos Tsiolkas,Garth Nix,Jodi Picoult,Kate Morton,Michael Connelly,Thomas Keneally,Peter Corris,Paul Keating,Stephanie Dowrick, andChristopher Hitchens. Allen & Unwin is also co-sponsor and publisher of the annualAustralian/Vogel Literary Award.
In 2017, Allen & Unwin refused to publish the bookSilent Invasion due to legal concerns that it "would be targeted by Beijing and its proxies in Australia."[8][9]
