Lisa Lucas is leaving the National Book Foundation to become publisher of Knopf Doubleday imprints Pantheon and Schocken Books. The move was announced in a pair of news releases Wednesday morning.
Lucas has served as executive director of the National Book Foundation, known for its National Book Awards, since 2016. She’s become one of the most influential and recognizable figures in American publishing.
“It has been an amazing privilege to lead the National Book Foundation these past few years and to work alongside, and champion, some of the greatest writers of our generation,” Lucas said.
Knopf publisher Reagan Arthur praised Lucas’ “formidable skills and boundless energy.”
“When I thought about Pantheon’s rich legacy and imagined ways to build on that for the future, the first name that came to mind was Lisa’s,” Arthur said. “I’m delighted to know that Pantheon will continue to thrive and evolve under her leadership, in concert with our incredible team of editors, marketers, and publicists.”
Pantheon Books has published some of the best-known books in publishing, such as Art Spiegelman’s Maus, Studs Terkels’ Working, Marguerite Duras’ The Lover, and Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis.
“The National Book Foundation gave me the opportunity to simultaneously celebrate great literature and imagine just how big the audience for excellent books could be if we only dared to dream bigger,” Lucas said. “In this same spirit, I look forward to joining Pantheon and Schocken, with an aim of building on the rich publishing history of those imprints and judiciously remixing their lists.”
Michael Schaub is a Texas-based journalist and regular contributor to NPR.
