Riverhead Books
Riverhead Books won the Dayton Literary Peace Prize in four of its first six years of publication. That record is striking for a young imprint. Riverhead was founded in 1994 by Susan Petersen Kennedy as an imprint of Penguin Group USA. From the start, it attracted writers whose work gained serious literary attention. Who are those writers, and what recognition has their work earned? Among those who chose Riverhead as their publisher: Khaled Hosseini, George Saunders, and Anne Lamott.
Marlon James, Junot Diaz, and Nick Hornby are among the fiction writers who have published with Riverhead. The nonfiction strand of the list runs from Daniel H. Pink and Steven Johnson to Carlo Rovelli and Randall Munroe. Between those two poles sits a range of writers including the Dalai Lama, Ali Sethi, Chang-rae Lee, Meg Wolitzer, and Dinaw Mengestu. Jon Ronson, Sarah Vowell, James McBride, and Elizabeth Gilbert have each extended the list further. Daniel Alarcón, Patricia Lockwood, C Pam Zhang, Jing Tsu, and Erri De Luca are also among those who have published with the imprint. Garrard Conley, Nicholas Binge, and Ellen Burstyn round out a roster that spans many nationalities and many decades. Many of those writers have given TED Talks. Olga Tokarczuk is also among those who have published with Riverhead.
In 2019, Olga Tokarczuk won the Nobel Prize in Literature. That honor was not the only one Riverhead's authors have earned. Four writers on the list have won MacArthur Genius Grants. Riverhead authors have also won PEN awards and the Booker Prize. The Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, given for writing by authors of African descent, has gone to Riverhead writers. So has the Stonewall Award for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender fiction. The National Book Foundation's 5 Under 35, which honors the best young emerging voices in fiction, has also recognized writers on the Riverhead list. Four Riverhead authors appeared on The New Yorker's 20 under 40 list of young fiction writers. Geoffrey Kloske holds the title of publisher at Riverhead today.
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Common questions
Who founded Riverhead Books and when?
Riverhead Books was founded in 1994 by Susan Petersen Kennedy. It operates as an imprint of Penguin Group USA.
Which Nobel Prize winner published with Riverhead Books?
Olga Tokarczuk, who published with Riverhead Books, won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2019.
What major literary prizes have Riverhead Books authors won?
Riverhead Books authors have won the Nobel Prize in Literature, the Booker Prize, PEN awards, and MacArthur Genius Grants. They have also earned the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award and the Stonewall Award for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender fiction. The National Book Foundation's 5 Under 35 has honored Riverhead authors as well.
Which well-known authors have published books with Riverhead Books?
Riverhead Books has published Khaled Hosseini, Marlon James, Junot Diaz, George Saunders, Nick Hornby, and Anne Lamott, among many others. Elizabeth Gilbert, Carlo Rovelli, and the Dalai Lama are also on the list.
How many MacArthur Genius Grant winners has Riverhead Books published?
Four authors published by Riverhead Books have won MacArthur Genius Grants.
Who is the current publisher of Riverhead Books?
Geoffrey Kloske is the publisher of Riverhead Books.
How many Dayton Literary Peace Prizes have Riverhead Books authors won?
Riverhead Books authors won the Dayton Literary Peace Prize in four of the imprint's first six years of publication.
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