Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Roger W. Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar established Farrar, Straus, and Company in 1945. Their first book was Yank: The G.I. Story of the War, a compilation of articles from the Army Weekly magazine. They followed this with There Were Two Pirates by James Branch Cabell. The early years were financially difficult for the new firm. Financial stability arrived only after they published Look Younger, Live Longer by Gayelord Hauser in 1950. That diet book sold 500,000 copies and kept the company afloat. Straus later said the book carried them along for a while. During these lean years, Straus and his wife Dorothea traveled to Italy to find new talent. They discovered Christ Stopped at Eboli by Carlo Levi there. They also found works by Alberto Moravia, Giovannino Guareschi, and Cesare Pavese. In 1950, the name changed to Farrar, Straus & Young when Stanley Young joined as an original stockholder.
Robert Giroux joined the company in 1955 after leaving Harcourt. He had been angry that Harcourt refused to publish J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye. Giroux brought many literary authors with him including Thomas Merton, John Berryman, Robert Lowell, Flannery O'Connor, Jack Kerouac, Peter Taylor, Randall Jarrell, T.S. Eliot, and Bernard Malamud. Alan Williams described this movement of writers as "almost certainly the greatest number of authors to follow, on their own initiative, a single editor from house to house in the history of modern publishing." In 1964, Straus named Giroux chairman of the board. The official name became Farrar, Straus and Giroux that same year. This partnership transformed the publisher's reputation from a struggling startup into a major literary force. The firm poached Edmund Wilson away from Random House while he was unhappy there. Wilson remained with Farrar, Straus for the remainder of his career.
Straus continued to run the company for twenty years after his partner Farrar died. He sold a majority interest of the company to the German publishing conglomerate Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group in 1993. Straus offered FSG to the Holtzbrinck family because of their reputation for publishing serious works of literature. Since 1993, the publisher has been a division of Macmillan. Macmillan's parent company is the German publishing conglomerate Holtzbrinck Publishing Group. Structural shifts occurred within the larger organization following the sale. The company maintained its focus on literary books despite the change in ownership. The acquisition marked a transition from independent operation to being part of a global media giant.
Jonathan Galassi served as both president and publisher until 2018. Andrew Mandel served as deputy publisher from 2004 to 2021. Mitzi Angel came from Fourth Estate in the UK to be publisher of the Faber and Faber Inc. imprint in 2008. In 2018, Angel succeeded Galassi as publisher. She was named president in 2021. Jenna Johnson was named vice president and editor in chief in December 2021. She took the baton from Eric Chinski who was named senior executive editor after 15 years as editor in chief. Other notable editors include Sean McDonald and Alex Star. FSG created specialized imprints like MCD and AUWA Books. MCD/FSG acts as a lab to experiment with new styles and genres. It is headed by Sean McDonald. Daphne Durham joined him as executive director to launch the imprint before leaving for Putnum in 2023. AUWA Books is an imprint directed by Questlove. He is a celebrated musician, producer, director, and author devoted to finding inspiring new stories. Hill and Wang publishes books of academic interest and specializes in history.
Farrar, Straus and Giroux authors have won numerous awards including Pulitzer Prizes, National Book Awards, and Nobel Prizes. Knut Hamsun won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1920 while published by the firm. Hermann Hesse received the award in 1946. T.S. Eliot followed in 1948. The list continues through decades with winners like Pablo Neruda in 1971 and Louise Glück in 2020. John Berryman won the Pulitzer Prize in 1965. Bernard Malamud took the honor in 1967. Jean Stafford won in 1970. Robert Lowell was awarded the prize in 1974. Thomas L. Friedman won three times in 1983, 1988, and 2002. Michael Cunningham won in 1999. Jonathan Franzen secured the National Book Award in 2001. Richard Powers won it in 2006. Evan Osnos took the award in 2014. FSG Books for Young Readers publishes National Book Award winners Madeleine L'Engle in 1980 and William Steig in 1983.
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Common questions
When was Farrar, Straus and Giroux established?
Roger W. Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar established Farrar, Straus, and Company in 1945.
What book saved Farrar, Straus and Giroux from financial failure?
Look Younger, Live Longer by Gayelord Hauser sold 500,000 copies and kept the company afloat after its publication in 1950.
Who joined Farrar, Straus and Giroux in 1955 to bring literary authors?
Robert Giroux joined the company in 1955 after leaving Harcourt and brought many literary authors including Thomas Merton and Flannery O'Connor.
Why did Farrar, Straus and Giroux change its name in 1964?
The official name became Farrar, Straus and Giroux that same year when Robert Giroux was named chairman of the board following Stanley Young's earlier entry as an original stockholder in 1950.
Which publisher acquired Farrar, Straus and Giroux in 1993?
Straus sold a majority interest of the company to the German publishing conglomerate Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group in 1993.
Who won the Nobel Prize in Literature while published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux?
Knut Hamsun won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1920 while Hermann Hesse received the award in 1946 and T.S. Eliot followed in 1948.