Penguin Brings the Classics to China

by Sara Nelson, PW Daily -- Publishers Weekly, 9/1/2006

HarperCollins was not the only English-language publisher striking a deal at this year’s Beijing Book Fair, as Penguin also announced publishing plans for China. The Pearson-owned house announced that it would work with the Chinese publisher Chongqing Publishing Group to release western classics that have never before been available in Chinese. Books will be translated into Mandarin.

Beginning in November, the first 10 books – with titles like Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and Moby Dick – will appear in a market that the newspaper China Daily estimates is growing by more than $300 million a year. First print runs are reported to be 10,000 and books in this highly price conscious market will cost about $2.50 each. Fifteen additional titles are set to be released in next May. All titles will bear the Penguin logo and feature Penguin’s black cover format. Penguin chairman John Makinson told the newspaper that this was just the beginning of the company’s long term strategy “to establish the Penguin brand in the Chinese market.”