by Andre Schiffrin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2000
This is a jolting reminder what has been lost and what was once possible in publishing—and an important story for anyone...
An unsentimental look at the corrupting influence of money on book publishing.
For 30 years Schiffrin was the publisher of Pantheon, a press founded by his Russian émigré father in 1942 and sold to Random House, then America’s largest publisher, in 1961. In recounting his tenure under the Random House umbrella, the author describes the systematic decline in support he received for publishing the kinds of “difficult” titles (foreign translations, political histories, and European social tracts) on which Pantheon built its reputation. He makes explicit what everyone already assumes: publishers in this new millennium are under tremendous pressure to generate larger and larger profits for the corporations that own them. In turn, more demanding titles that command smaller audiences are passed over in favor of publishing-industry lottery tickets: potential blockbusters that are purchased for astronomical advances in the hope that the press generated by the huge sum will help push the title to the top of the bestseller lists. In this atmosphere of “market censorship,” editors are forced to “self-censor” and refuse titles that do not have potential to reach a level of profit pre-ordained by the conglomerates. Schiffrin believes many of the 75,000 books published each year address the lowest common denominator—a phenomenon that he portrays as socially irresponsible. His personal conviction that the publishing industry should do more to foster cultural and political debate, rather than pandering to the establishment or mass market, can sound naïve or nostalgic. But he explains how he has acted on what he believes. After leaving Pantheon in disappointment in 1990, serendipity coupled with the financial support of various foundations allowed Schiffrin to found The New Press to once again pursue what he sees as the original mission of publishing: the edification, rather than exploitation, of the masses.
This is a jolting reminder what has been lost and what was once possible in publishing—and an important story for anyone interested in the future of reading.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2000
ISBN: 1-85984-763-3
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Verso
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2000
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by Daniel Kahneman ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 2011
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our...
A psychologist and Nobel Prize winner summarizes and synthesizes the recent decades of research on intuition and systematic thinking.
The author of several scholarly texts, Kahneman (Emeritus Psychology and Public Affairs/Princeton Univ.) now offers general readers not just the findings of psychological research but also a better understanding of how research questions arise and how scholars systematically frame and answer them. He begins with the distinction between System 1 and System 2 mental operations, the former referring to quick, automatic thought, the latter to more effortful, overt thinking. We rely heavily, writes, on System 1, resorting to the higher-energy System 2 only when we need or want to. Kahneman continually refers to System 2 as “lazy”: We don’t want to think rigorously about something. The author then explores the nuances of our two-system minds, showing how they perform in various situations. Psychological experiments have repeatedly revealed that our intuitions are generally wrong, that our assessments are based on biases and that our System 1 hates doubt and despises ambiguity. Kahneman largely avoids jargon; when he does use some (“heuristics,” for example), he argues that such terms really ought to join our everyday vocabulary. He reviews many fundamental concepts in psychology and statistics (regression to the mean, the narrative fallacy, the optimistic bias), showing how they relate to his overall concerns about how we think and why we make the decisions that we do. Some of the later chapters (dealing with risk-taking and statistics and probabilities) are denser than others (some readers may resent such demands on System 2!), but the passages that deal with the economic and political implications of the research are gripping.
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our minds.Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-374-27563-1
Page Count: 512
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Sept. 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2011
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BOOK REVIEW
by Erin Meyer ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 27, 2014
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.
A helpful guide to working effectively with people from other cultures.
“The sad truth is that the vast majority of managers who conduct business internationally have little understanding about how culture is impacting their work,” writes Meyer, a professor at INSEAD, an international business school. Yet they face a wider array of work styles than ever before in dealing with clients, suppliers and colleagues from around the world. When is it best to speak or stay quiet? What is the role of the leader in the room? When working with foreign business people, failing to take cultural differences into account can lead to frustration, misunderstanding or worse. Based on research and her experiences teaching cross-cultural behaviors to executive students, the author examines a handful of key areas. Among others, they include communicating (Anglo-Saxons are explicit; Asians communicate implicitly, requiring listeners to read between the lines), developing a sense of trust (Brazilians do it over long lunches), and decision-making (Germans rely on consensus, Americans on one decider). In each area, the author provides a “culture map scale” that positions behaviors in more than 20 countries along a continuum, allowing readers to anticipate the preferences of individuals from a particular country: Do they like direct or indirect negative feedback? Are they rigid or flexible regarding deadlines? Do they favor verbal or written commitments? And so on. Meyer discusses managers who have faced perplexing situations, such as knowledgeable team members who fail to speak up in meetings or Indians who offer a puzzling half-shake, half-nod of the head. Cultural differences—not personality quirks—are the motivating factors behind many behavioral styles. Depending on our cultures, we understand the world in a particular way, find certain arguments persuasive or lacking merit, and consider some ways of making decisions or measuring time natural and others quite strange.
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.Pub Date: May 27, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-61039-250-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2014
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