NewSouth Books
Encyclopedia
NewSouth Books is an independent publishing house founded in 2000 in Montgomery, Alabama
, by editor H. Randall Williams and publisher Suzanne LaRosa. Williams was the founder of Black Belt Press, working there from 1986 to 1999, and LaRosa worked in magazine and book publishing in New York City
, before moving South. The publishing house currently has offices in Montgomery and Louisville, Kentucky
. They are unrelated to NewSouth Books, an imprint of UNSW Press based in Sydney
, New South Wales
, Australia
.
NewSouth Books publishes nonfiction, fiction
and poetry
, as well as children's books. They have published works of fiction by Hans Koning
and Gerald Duff; books of poetry by Andrew Glaze, John Beecher
, Jorge Carrera Andrade, and Tom House; biographies of famous Alabamians like Sen. Howell Heflin
, Gov. John Malcolm Patterson
, and U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Hugo Black
; and memoirs by Civil Rights figures Attorney Fred Gray
and Rev. Robert Graetz
.
The company received media attention in January 2011 for publishing an expurgated
edition of Mark Twain
's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
that censored the words "nigger" and "Injun." An argument to censor the edition was voiced by Alan Gribben
, a professor at Auburn University
, who said the version would be more friendly to teachers and students at schools which currently ban the book. NewSouth's version was met with criticism, with some saying the censorship failed to adequately convey the original connotations of Twain's text.
Montgomery, Alabama
Montgomery is the capital of the U.S. state of Alabama, and is the county seat of Montgomery County. It is located on the Alabama River southeast of the center of the state, in the Gulf Coastal Plain. As of the 2010 census, Montgomery had a population of 205,764 making it the second-largest city...
, by editor H. Randall Williams and publisher Suzanne LaRosa. Williams was the founder of Black Belt Press, working there from 1986 to 1999, and LaRosa worked in magazine and book publishing in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, before moving South. The publishing house currently has offices in Montgomery and Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. They are unrelated to NewSouth Books, an imprint of UNSW Press based in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
NewSouth Books publishes nonfiction, fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
and poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, as well as children's books. They have published works of fiction by Hans Koning
Hans Koning
Hans Koning , author of over 40 fiction and non-fiction books, was also a prolific journalist, contributing for almost 60 years to many periodicals including The New York Times, International Herald Tribune, Atlantic Monthly, The Nation, Harper's, The New Yorker, and De Groene Amsterdammer.-...
and Gerald Duff; books of poetry by Andrew Glaze, John Beecher
John Beecher
John Beecher was an activist poet, writer and journalist who wrote about the Southern United States during the Great Depression and the American Civil Rights Movement. Beecher was extremely active in the American labor and Civil Rights movements...
, Jorge Carrera Andrade, and Tom House; biographies of famous Alabamians like Sen. Howell Heflin
Howell Heflin
Howell Thomas Heflin was a United States Senator from Tuscumbia, Alabama, and a member of the Democratic Party.-Biography:...
, Gov. John Malcolm Patterson
John Malcolm Patterson
John Malcolm Patterson is an American politician who was the 44th Governor of Alabama, from 1959 to 1963. Previously he served as State Attorney General ....
, and U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Hugo Black
Hugo Black
Hugo Lafayette Black was an American politician and jurist. A member of the Democratic Party, Black represented Alabama in the United States Senate from 1927 to 1937, and served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1937 to 1971. Black was nominated to the Supreme...
; and memoirs by Civil Rights figures Attorney Fred Gray
Fred Gray
Fred Gray is a civil rights attorney and activist who practices law in Alabama . He served as the President of the National Bar Association in 1985 and the first African-American President of the Alabama State Bar....
and Rev. Robert Graetz
Robert Graetz
Robert S. Graetz is a Lutheran clergyman who, as the white pastor of a black congregation in Montgomery, Alabama, openly supported the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a landmark event of the U.S. civil rights movement.-Role in civil rights movement:...
.
The company received media attention in January 2011 for publishing an expurgated
Expurgation
Expurgation is a form of censorship which involves purging anything deemed noxious or offensive, usually from an artistic work.This has also been called bowdlerization, especially for books, after Thomas Bowdler, who in 1818 published an expurgated edition of William Shakespeare's work that he...
edition of Mark Twain
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a novel by Mark Twain, first published in England in December 1884 and in the United States in February 1885. Commonly named among the Great American Novels, the work is among the first in major American literature to be written in the vernacular, characterized by...
that censored the words "nigger" and "Injun." An argument to censor the edition was voiced by Alan Gribben
Alan Gribben
Alan Gribben is a professor of English at Auburn University at Montgomery in Alabama and a noted Mark Twain scholar. He was Distinguished Research Professor from 1998 to 2001 and the Dr. Guinevera A. Nance Alumni Professor from 2006 to 2009...
, a professor at Auburn University
Auburn University
Auburn University is a public university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 25,000 students and 1,200 faculty members, it is one of the largest universities in the state. Auburn was chartered on February 7, 1856, as the East Alabama Male College, a private liberal arts...
, who said the version would be more friendly to teachers and students at schools which currently ban the book. NewSouth's version was met with criticism, with some saying the censorship failed to adequately convey the original connotations of Twain's text.