next, watch interviews with authors and discussions on the current state of the world. >> bernice king, who is either scott greatly? >> she's the sister of librettist scott king. of course, you know who letter to scott king is. she later became a drama professor. she founded the drama department in pennsylvania. she is a very lively woman. unfortunately, she passed away last year in june. actually, after completing this

bill. >> so this is the life and legacy of greta got king, and is greta scott king. >> yes. .. and so right it, 68, april 4th , the manuscript in the mailbox.

got the news that evening. my father had been a fast -- assassinated. at that time i came to a atlanta to help mother with the funeral arrangements and then the children put the first couple of years and helping my mother with the establishment. at that time my mother said, you know, maybe a want to write my own life story. in 1969. it is no longer in print. in 2004 and 66 she knew about the manuscript, very much wanted to completed. said, why don't you go ahead and complete the manuscript in 2004. of course, i needed, again, to do some more work because from 66 to a 2004 law had happened. as a result of a few months, maybe a year later on mother became ill.

so she could not focus. sixteen months later my sister passed. 2008, 2009, she started completing this particular book. a had a conversation with her one day. she said, people need to know more about corona. martin did not make corona. they need to know credit came from strong family roots, strong family that was deeply grounded in faith, our education and have it prepared us as women to be leaders. very much an activist involved, and they need to know about it. i am working on the book, this book. well, can i help you? get it published. and that is out this journey began. >> so, bernice king, your mother, how active was she?

when did she began her activism? she was born in marion, alabama? >> ironically, if you study history, three of the leading persons in the movement, and dion, abernathy, and my father, they all had wives. how ironic is that? and mom did not know. she knew gene young, much younger. when the movement started, they did not know, you know, about varying different men and all that kind of stuff. it just brought it all together. and so growing up there and rural alabama with a father who was an entrepreneur early on, and heard of as an african-american, had his own truck. he hauled lumber. he opened a mill that burned down. i think the early influence of my father's determination to stand up to and justice and also

to continue to move fourth ahead with courage really influenced her. she went on. produced a lot of socially active leaders in our nation, missionaries came and educating the children. became more socially minded. think about the world that they live in. and that began early activism and hurt. perry interested. why am i here? well, from that point on, by the time she gets antioch college in ohio she became involved in the naacp, the political society, and the peace movement more importantly. she was involved in the peace movement well an advantage half of speaking out against the war in vietnam. >> the public image of your mother is behind the scenes, a mother, quiet. >> quiet.

what was she like as a person? >> she was very mission driven, had a great spirit. the thing i like to say about her most is she exuded the unconditional love like nobody i've ever knew. assassinated. she used to tell me all the time, i don't hold grudges. for a woman to share of that she shared, being in the house, 1966, right after, i mean, that is the time were all kind of motions can be aroused. heat, but dennis. she had no emotional bitterness, only love and understanding and goodwill and hope and faith. she just, she loved the site and did not let that hinder her work and so i lived with that

constantly. so you can imagine as as children, caring about our father being assassinated. little kids, the father has been taken away that way, you can really become very hate filled. my mother taught us about love and that the father left for good cause. you don't pay people. and so i live with that example in the home constantly. it is a duty, read the story. >> where did you come up with the title? >> mike, did. they obviously grew up in very harsh, difficult circumstances, the segregated south, very difficult for african americans to see, to thrive. and yet education, family upbringing, kind of like harsh circumstances, difficult

circumstances. she learned to have the freedom to put forth out of those circumstances, the beautiful, courageous, dedicated, graceful, determined, committed woman. that is out came. >> bernice king, what do you remember? >> actually, i don't remember april 4th at all. you know, i was told. about the time the news got to atlanta it was evening time. he was killed around 7:00 p.m. atlanta time. and so i was, you know, they put me to bed. the next day when my mother went to get my father's body and bring it back to atlanta, she knew she would have to explain what was going on. she told me that, you know, my

father would no longer be able to speak to me. he had gone to live with god. you know kids, i did not say anything immediately. we went to the airport, got on the plane. i heard this noise. and as said, i hear him back there breathing. this leap but he will be able to talk to me. a year and breathing. no, no. later on how is he going to eat? unremembered data being at home at the dinner several. i remember him bleach seen for these long stem onions. he would pick it up into it like salary. i want to know, how is he going to each?

as is said to god is going to take care of him. a rubber the funeral. it was hot. a lot of light, a lot of camera. i told my mother, is so hot. but the most startling thing was when it was time to do the eulogy they had decided to place from february 4th 1967 that he delivered at ebenezer baptist church. and in a strange way he talked-about, i don't want a long funeral. that was the whole thing, peace and righteousness, of these other things don't matter. they played that. i remember my mom said, he can't speak anymore to you. he can't talk.

so suddenly i'm like looking for my dad, thinking he was going to come out. nothing. a child knows their father's voice. kind of tragic. to put her arms around me to comfort me, but that was kind of eerie. >> did your own boat -- older sibling get in a little more than you do? >> to a family. my sister was very close. he's my buddy. he found comfort coming home to us. used to play basketball. my mom did not really like that. but he enjoyed it. i mean they talked a lot. a great loss for her. carries his name. a few weeks before he was assassinated, traveled with him to a rural mississippi because at that time that it was looking

to do a campaign. doing a little recruiting in the south. so intimate time with him doing the work that he did. so it was very traumatic for all of us because i remember he used to come home. we had at the game. i would run up to his arms. he would pick me up. okay. regard to play the kissing game. okay. i'm happy that he is tom. okay. where is -- the call its share. where is mom's? my sisters nickname. so i remember my spot being on the forehead. mother seems to remember it being on the cheek. i did the game. okay? i remember the forehead. >> how did your mother's life

changed after your death? >> it changed drastically. my mother was very much working side-by-side with my father's movement. in fact, he wanted. in new england and the match. and he had to wrestle. her real sense of mission to want to change the convictions that -- the conditions that blacks had to live under. steady did, too. decided, just remembered. and so during the movement he had a wonderful opportunity to use that career, that talents to raise money for the movement, the freedom fighters. so doing, you know, organizing, even his papers, she still found time to take care of the home. so once he was assassinated i

did not good to see my mother as much as i would have liked to. >> was she got a lot more? >> she was gone, but she was busy. and so the things we may have done as daughter and mother, that did not take place. so that did not take place. she was focused on institutionalizing the legacy. she felt that american is understand the very things that caved significance to the movement, which was influenced by jesus christ and mahatma gandhi. so she built the king center in atlanta and put her heart and soul into that and galvanized people to support it, began teaching their non-violent institutes, scholarship programs, people, nonviolence. and then her focus shifted and they raise the money. that was when we come you know,

debt-free. tnc focused on the holidays. and so you can imagine, you know, in her bedroom sometimes. she's at home. cs on the phone talking to presidents, prime ministers, everyday ordinary people. my mother was phenomenal. she was the kind of person that knew how to shift and injustice and a minute's notice. so she could talk to the president. she had to talk to someone in the hunt was of paramount. she had to do something, and everyday ordinary person, she loved to entertain. so she invited a lot of people to the house from time to time. had little parties. came over. she was going to fix you some of her favorite vegetables. and then proceed to tell you about this movement. she would light up. she got energy talking about the movement, excited about it. i could not understand it.

but for her that was fulfillment . she felt, this is the reason that my life has gone the pad that it has, antioch. this is what it has been about. >> bernice king, did your mother and family stay in the same house? >> chose to follow, yes. after daddy was assassinated, we stayed in the same house. the house was not purchased until 1951. my father did not want to on anything. he was struggling with all of that. she said, look, you have a wife and children and we have to have a place to stay. they always talked about the fact that one day he probably would died tragically, president kennedy. he said that is going to be my fate. co is anticipated that and do. so she made sure he bought that house.

state in the house until 2004. >> to your grand parents, where they around drawing up? >> i very much did. i visited my grandparents in alabama every sunday. i mean every summer for two weeks. sometimes my grandfather, would help my grandmother with some of that. you know, i helped her a round the dinner table. washing the dishes and watching her cook. sitting at the table and have long, family discussions. a great deal of family. alternatively, thanksgiving and christmas. and then my father, al was very close. they lived in atlanta. i saw them every week practically. they were very influential in my life. >> after your dad's assassination or even before,

did you have security around your family at all times? >> initially we did. for the most part, no. there was one time, we had to have security. gatt, this is really embarrassing to have them surround you. they sat outside in the cars. it was just kind of uncomfortable as a little kid. i did not understand all of this, the magnitude of from my father was to my family, anything. other than that my mother had a lead the police officers assigned to her. and so she had until the death. >> she had somebody with her at all times? could see get to a store, anywhere without people stopping her? >> if you times she would sneak without security. they would get on her about it, but, no, that is what i was

saying, you know, i never had an opportunity to really go shopping with my aunt's. a couple of times that i can remember we got stopped at every turn in the mall. i mean, people wanting autographs, pictures. and so she did not do it a lot because it became a little burdensome. we did more dinners at families, particularly more private areas, but people would come up and say, you know, can i get an autograph. it was very difficult. to really go out. i don't -- she probably did more of those, one on vacations, you know some of the things that they would have, but i'll tell you one story and remember that i love. i went to the hallmark store with her a couple of times. >> hallmark. >> hallmark.

my mother, as busy as she was, literally took time, two or three hours at the hallmark store reading cards, making sure it was the exact card for the person. she was that the full. and the first time i went with her to want. the two months at a time. march april. she would look at the list. she gave me one. the one you to go get a card for these people. so i went, start looking and thinking about the relationship you have the person, the type of person they work to get the right card. ticket back to her. you know, i got it right a few times. but i was just in know she is so busy. most people that a busy they send their people to get the card and get it done. she was a thoughtful and considerate. that is how, for many people, that is why i think she had touched so many people personally.

>> any irony in the fact that desert rose, the life and legacy, published by the university of alabama. >> well, yes. it is real ironic. of course mother being from alabama, but much of the movement was concentrated in alabama. the other irony, we remember blocking the doors of the university of alabama, you know, keeping the black students from coming in. and so here you fast forward to today, the alabama that basically told martin luther king jr., you know, tried to run them out of alabama, that, agitator's, disturbing the peace, and this was even in birmingham, now from alabama. now being published by the university of alabama press. i find that.

and i tell you, the greater irony is that on june 11th is when george wallace locked the doors. >> fifty-three? >> sixty. >> i think it was 63. the irony was that june 11th is the same day. isn't that ironic? the author of the book. >> when is the last -- what is the last conversation you had? your mother. >> oh, wow. the last one, i don't remember literally my last conversation, you know, my mother had a stroke in august and two dozen five. and so from that point for she did not talk a lot. i was with her. i don't -- you know, i don't remember the exact conversation.

i remember the sunday before, she had the stroke on tuesday. that sunday, august 14th, i was and the bahamas. i call to let her know that i had gotten and. make sure that she was okay. she had a minor stroke two weeks before that. checking to make sure that everything was okay. astor, the paperwork. at that time trying to make sure i got on her bank accounts.@ she had signed the paperwork, thank god. that was our last real conversation. i give you a call on tuesday as she had a stroke on tuesday. and then the rest is history. the rest of my conversations, she said a few words here and there. >> bernice king, what do you do? >> i am actually the ceo of the institution my mother founded.

we are in the process of expanding our educational platform so that we can be more available online as well as curriculum's being used in the school system. you know, her mission was to get non-violence into our society as a way of life. and i think the only way to really do that is their education of young people. and so that, you know, the mandate, you know, to bring about the community that he talked about, teaching people and educating them in the philosophy and methodology of nonviolence that he thought and lived. and after developing leaders in the same spirit as dr. king. so that is what i'm doing. and we are also in the process of building a whole new facility that will be more attractive so that when young people, and will be like a social -- and disney

experience. when you leave it will be like you will be educated. so i call it ag entertainment. >> is ebenezer still an active church? >> ebenezer is an active church. two locations. the sanctuary. it was just restored and reopened last april where people can come and tour. it sits right next to the king center. make sure to preserve that community. a very thriving community for african-americans back in the early '20s and other his top '40's, and 50's. and many of the homes there command one of them was my father's birth home. because of my father's visit, the place is there. sitting there. and to save that, and others,

saved as a result, that community, and a much better place now because of that. so the new sanctuary to love very much a thriving conversational. there are now building a community resource center named after my grandfather, with revenues of for 44 years,. >> and we have been talking here on book tv with bernice king, the daughter, of course, of corona scott king. this is a book written by her aunt, he is scott, sister of credit scott king. and publication by bernice king, there is an afterword by mr. cain. does it rose, the life and legacy of corona scott. >> well, one of the largest publishers in america is harvard college. we are pleased to be joined here at book expo america by one of the senior editors. i want to introduce you to build

strong, an editor at harpercollins. what does that mean? we say you are an editor. >> we acquired the books of the publishing house will publish and see them through. so you edit the books. authoress advocate within the house and a sense and the house advocate to the author, so that is what we try and do. >> you start with the original idea as well? >> in some cases you do, but in those cases i do only nonfiction. so it is a little bit -- come up with an idea of proposal and then go from there. in the case of desperate signs, this is actually my idea. >> what is desperate signs? >> as word sons is a book about the sons of liberty, pre revolutionary war grew that were sort of our original occupiers. they decided that there were going to make life miserable for the british because -- and they

were going to go home. so it starts with the albany right. 1765. culminates with the tea party and the revolution. >> who were some of the leaders? >> well, paul revere. i mean, some of them became iconic. sam adams, his brother. some of them you have never heard of. but the triumph i think of this book is that, the author has sort of trace the narrative history and connected the events and on all the way through the colonies and put it into narrative form. >> where did you get this idea? >> i read an article. somebody said, what is the insurgency movement in a rock? who are these guys? someone might look back in our history. the sons of liberty or america's insurgents at the time. i thought, hot, has anybody done about? and no one really has. it gets mentioned elsewhere, but it has not been developed.

so i went looking for an author and found one, a very popular historian. he is not an academic historian, but he is a great writer. he set out to figure out who these guys were and what happened. that work done nicely. >> what is another book he had been working on for the fall? >> another book for the fall, a biography of an admiral in chief of naval operations from 70-74 who commanded the brown water navy in vietnam and then was promoted to be chief of naval operations. regarded by some as the most dynamic naval officer ever and by others as, you know, complete renegade. he was the man who really integrated the navy against the old guard. he was one of the most racist branches of the u.s. military, and the integrated it and brought women and and did everything else. and widely regarded as a great hero.

and i think the triumph year, and actually, it is interesting because the author, larry berman, first met the hamel when he was interviewing him for a c-span series on vietnam because he was influential in vietnam and had a falling out with kissinger and nixon and the like. so they talked about this. and when he retired he was approached about doing a biography. the papers were locked up for years, but eventually they came out unsealed. now they're coming out in the fall, and i think it is great. this sort a footnote is about a year from now one of the destroyers, the new model of destroyers will be named after him and launches. >> well, we have been talking with one of the editors at harper collins and another one of their editors is adam bellow. very briefly, give us your career in publishing? >> i am strictly and nonfiction editor.

i have been an editor for 25 years. what i am particularly noted for doing is publishing books of political conservatives. so i started out doing that 25 years ago at the free press. i published books by people -- i'm not sure there are still current people that are remembered, but my for successful but was called the liberal education. i published books by david block, charles murray, genital byrd, and i have been doing that for a very long time. i started out doing it, nobody else was doing it. >> is that how you develop? >> i like to be contrarian. yes. i like to be the only person doing something. it turned into a successful business, so now there are four imprints in mainstream publishing the put out conservative books including the one i write for harpercollins. >> what are some of the books that you want to tell us about? >> well, two that are coming out in the fall, the first one i

would mention is a book by charles kessler called i am the change, barack obama and the crisis of liberalism. as you can imagine, this is a big political year. every conservative intellectual who is capable of writing or publishing a book has one in the works. and my list is intended to be as much as possible serious, intellectually serious. although, because of the fact that now the left and the right each have their own sphere of media discussions, it is very difficult to get the real controversy going. it was easier in the old days when there was only one big media platform and everybody had to fight for it. now we have our own. it has some benefit in that it has enlarged the market for books by conservative right to five writers, but it means that we have to be smarter if we want liberals to read your books and pay attention to them. and charles kessler is one of

the smartest guys that i have known on the right, and have none of the 25 years. he is a professor at claremont college. the publisher and chief editor of the claremont review of books demolishes the conservative answer to the new york review of books. and this is a book that stems from -- it grows out of an article attests to a published called the three waves of literal of -- liberalism. i feel like it should be expanded into a book to frame it as a study of barack obama's intellectual roots as a liberal. one of the things that is notable about kessler's book aside from its very high sexual level and its scathing wit is the fact that kessler takes obama seriously as an intellectual, as a political thinker. this is, as you can imagine, unusual for a conservative. most of them just call him names. kessler argues that obama is misunderstood as a socialist. he is not really.

he is really, in fact, the air of three previous waves of political liberalism or progressivism, all of which are concentrated really in his mentality, the first wave was lost by woodrow wilson, the second by franklin roosevelt, the third by lyndon johnson, and there is a fourth wave which is a 60's era identity politics waged. obama is trying to sympathize and unify all of these somewhat conflicting philosophical premises. naturally he is having a hard time with it. so what i like about the book in particular is that kessler res obama's speeches, interviews and writings, his press conferences. it is really based on what obama himself has said. it is a guide from the conservative point of view to what obama thinks and believes. >> what else do you have coming out? >> another book that we are excited about. it is called the naked

constitution, what the founders said and what is still matters. and as most of us know, there has been a longstanding debate in this country about how closely and literally one should read the constitution. in the last couple of years, says the rise of the tea party this has become a political issue. now it seems set be something that has real-world consequences the conservatives are challenging the constitutionality of the individual health care mandate is still in from the doctrine called the living constitution and antiquated document this is

of this is not the point of view of the right wing. the constitutional affairs who can read, entertaining somebody on level of jeffrey toobin, i see adam friedman having a significant -- >> race-based? >> here in new york. he works for a law firm. a comment for ricochet dot com.

i expect him to have a very good career. >> was this an idea that he had? >> well, many of these books, i have to say, are a product of a collaboration. an author will come with an idea. i have to say, it is difficult to have ideas for writers, and it is not like you are a magazine editor and newspaper editor and you call somebody up and sell what 400 words on this by thursday and up you whenever it. if you want someone to write a book you are giving them an idea that there will have to live with for a couple of years. although many editors like to suggest ideas to others, it turns out and practice to be not such a great idea. in this case, he knew exactly what he wanted to do. >> finally, you mentioned at the beginning you like to be a contrarian. do you come from a conservative background? >> that is an interesting question. it is a difficult question to answer. let me put it this way. my mother was a red diaper baby

the amount raised as a communist new york city. and so through her i have this sort of -- and i grew up in the 60's. i am very much a product of that era. one of the things that i would observe is that i have now published, i would say, three generations of conservative writers. each one is different. each generation is very much marked by the culture, the temper of the culture in which they grew up, so i have to say i am a product of my time in that respect, but i am also the son of a well-known novelist. a fellow who had a sort of classic kneele conservative trajectory. he started out as a trust used in the 1930's. like many jewish leftists began to move to the right when communism was undeniable. his concern about the security of israel and men in general,

would say this, he did not take the 60's very well. it was something that he thought was an attempt to jettison 2500 years of western civilization which he as an immigrant and non native english speaker had observed and used in his development as a writer. so he thought there was some value in it. in the 70's and 80's he began to break ranks with the liberal new york establishment. and so growing up i had a very powerful example of somebody who was independent and not afraid to challenge the reigning consensus, wherever it was. although, i would have to say, he would be misunderstood as a conventional red winter. there still is a difference. so anyway, i hope that answers your question. >> we have been talking with adam bellow and bill strawn of

harpercollins publishers about some of their upcoming titles. gentlemen, thank you. >> thank you. >> you are watching an interview from book tv recent trip to new york city from book expo america. the publishing industry's annual trade show. for more information visit but -- book expo america dot com. >> book tv is in new york city for the annual book expo america. but publishers annual convention june 2012. this is a chance for us to introduce you to different books that are coming up in the fall, but also to some of the different publishers who are here and what they may be presenting as well. let me introduce you to two independent publishers. we will begin with johnny@ temple, the founder and@@@@@ publisher in brooklyn. dennis johnson. he is the co-founder and co

publisher. and that publishing house is also located in brooklyn. gentlemen, is there something about brooklyn, an independent -- >> we live near each other, to. >> independent publishers and brooklyn, is there any angle to that? >> it is a great scene for independent publishers. there are quite a few very good ones in brooklyn. you know, it is a nice, supportive community. we see each other regularly. we do events together. i give place. also a lot of writers. they kind of developed independent publishing area. >> over the past five or ten years, and part of it is the publishing and has a natural home in new york city given the history of publishing, and, frankly, most independent publishers and writers cannot afford to live in manhattan anymore. in brooklyn, even though local government, brooklyn borough hall, very successful.

our monthly organizers, happening every september. this will be our seventh year coming up. actually a somewhat galvanizing event for the brooklyn culture. >> that is modest. we actually put that thing together every year. it has become, i think, one of the greatest literary events in america every year. and the other factor that contributes greatly is that while a big american publishing is headquartered in midtown manhattan, most of the people that work there also live in brooklyn. when you have something, it's out only the great in the publishers and great writers, but just a lot of publishing people. it is really a wonderful event. i think that is one reason a lot of and the publishers are drawn to brooklyn. >> give us a brief history.@@

>> well, no house may be an@ example of what i am talking@@@@ about because we were actually@@ found it at my kitchen table.@@@ my wife and i invented noble@@@@ house in a third floor walk up@@ in hoboken, new jersey.@@@ after we had done a couple of@@@ books festivals, so in love with the scene in brooklyn that@@@ removed the company there and@ ourselves there.@@@@ and so we were founded ten year@ ago, almost to the day.@@@ and we were kind of responding@@ to the political scene at the@@@ moment.@@@ post -- right after september@@@ september 11th. we were reall@@y kind of horrif@ by the call to arms.@@@ we felt very motivated to found@ a press that was more activist than we thought the big houses were being.@@@@ >> were you working in the@@@

publishing industry?@@ >> no.@@ i was a short story writer,@@@@ graduated from the higher level@ workshop.@@@@@@@ very wealthy@.@@@@@ so i was also a book journalist@ i wrote a lot about criticism@@ and industry.@@@@ but i really knew nothing.@@@@@@ i feel like in retrospect that @ knew nothing about the book@@@@@ industry, so i became a@@@@@ publisher.@ most of the trends that i was@@@ writing about really did not@@@@ know how publishing actually@@@@ worked, how books it made and@@@ get to the market.@@@@@ and now i still kind of keep up@ the journalism on our blog.@@@@ commenting on industry, but@@@ culture from an insider@@@@ perspective.@@@@ but in a nutshell. >> this is history. >> started in 1997, actually. we published one book. i started the company with a

couple of friends. at the time i was earning a very good living. a band called girls against boys. we had a lucrative couple of years. and so it was a sort of vote when. >> okay. that did not know this part of your story. how much were you making as a member? can you give us a rough figure? >> i cannot disclose that information, not enough to be carrying in 2012. >> the book publishing company on a whim. i started with a couple of friends, lobby and mark sullivan who were also musicians. sullivan had an unpublished novel. that was not what we started with, but the fact that we had an unpublished novel but as an a publishing books, so we sort of jumped in. right then, none of us had any experience in the book publishing business.

and i actually think that has given me a leg up. i don't know about you, but i feel a lot of people in publishing are burdened with this sort of history of the diminishing importance of literature whereas i don't actually feel that literature is diminishing. i think it is a great time to be a publisher, and i think that there is a lot of sort of woe is me spirit in book publishing. i think not having that background has allowed me to, perhaps, have a certain level to a about it. but also to conduct business differently. what we did discover, i'm sure you went through this same process, the book industry is not a lot of the core strategie@ , the core way that@@@@ people opera contractually.@@@@@ the concept of book return, it@@ is a crazy business.@@ it is really not like a lot of@@ other businesses.@@@@@ along paid or you could have@ been successful but but you're@

not getting the money.@@@ you can go out of business.@@@@ a very strange business.@@@@ we have a lot of people from@@@@ businesses, when we started.@@@@ i can't make any sense out of@@ this.@@@@ you are on your@ own.@@ so, you know, you make it up.@@@ you try to figure it out and do what you think is the logical@@@ way.@@@@@@ ten years later, like 12 years@ or so now, it was a good thing@@ that we did it that way.@@@@@ we found a different way to do a thing of the normal way. >> it is because you complemented the book. earlier, i have to complement dennis. i think that one of the challenges of being a book publisher, you do need to always be reinventing yourself and exploring new ideas. and if you go to the website and look at all of the various initiatives that they are doing and look at the stylized way. they published their book, all the integrity that they bring. you will see a much fresher energy out of what they are

doing than the mainstream business, which like us said, caught up in feeling a bit sorry for itself. ♪ to you have a point of view? the point of view. the project have a point of view. >> the word, a transcript word. the concept of a giant library where knowledge is reported. it is a little bit a deceptive name because it has new age connotations to it. the people who are familiar with the word. there is not very much. so we do have an extremely diverse list. we publish 25 to 30 books a year, and it is mostly fiction. we also have a generally speaking sort of progressive political orientation to what we are doing. however, i do like to post my liberal, we do have some right

wing of those on our list. i am not trying to be ideological in the program. on the other hand, the books that republish are true to my own personal passion for issues of social justice. >> we should acknowledge your that the house that came out with the best seller. did that put you on firm financial footing? >> like i said, we published our first book in 1997. it was scratching and clawing and a lot of sort of smoke and mirrors and financial just desperation up until 2011 when this book that we published sort of children's books, parents with young children. it just took off. it was a book that we had high hopes for, but the way that it delivered was far beyond anything that we could ever imagine. it is right now, the first time

in our company's history when there is anything remotely resembling a financial stability . and it is an unusual feeling to have some breathing room. >> in node, a credit card. you play a lot.@ but you can't get -- for example, you can't get people t@ back a publishing company.@ i don't know how we started in@@ retrospect because no venture@@ capitalists is going to put@@ money into an industry with@ tiny, tiny margins like this.@@ so you really have. i think survival is just this thing that feels like it.@@@ and maybe if you live long enough, some things you did write in the past come back.@ some good writers. they came up with this project.@ the guy that wrote this to my@ you know, it was a guy that he knew that he had worked with for a while.@ it was just kind of like a work in the past bear fruit. and that is what you pay for.

>> the house book that people@ may be familiar with.@@ >> well, i think find a writer, a world war ii era writer who actually died in 1947.@ we rediscovered a book of his called every man buys. they then sold around the world in huge numbers. we also some lessons.@ they change the title to a line in berlin. in the last three years it has@ sold hundreds and hundreds of copies around the world and become a phenomenon. the writer is completely bereft@ >> usage you lessons the book?@ how does that work?@ >> well, when you buy rights to@ property you buy it for a territory. the world english rights for this of the that had never been transmitted by that book that had not been translated.@ we had some success with it, one

of the biggest publishers and@ the world got interested.@ we some places than the rights to sell that book in the u.k. >> just in the u.k. >> right. >> the stock was some of the upcoming fall 2012 titles that both your houses have. let's start with ricardo. the secret history. >> best known these days as the illustrator of go the f to sleep, a very insightful book. an interesting book, a secret history. it is a curious nonfiction book that is also illustrated. a short book, about 50 pages long, beautifully, beautifully illustrated. it tells some of the history of the coca-cola company that most people are not aware of. it is not a book that attacks the coca-cola, however, it is

about to shed light on how coca-cola was able to achieve this very unique trade status whereby coca-cola this day, use the coca leaf which is banned worldwide in the manufacturing of coca-cola. now, granted, that you extract the cocaine out of the coca leaf before they use the leaf in the making of coca-cola. but this is a book that is not just report on that because this has actually been reported on before. this is not new information. ricardo was able to find interesting correspondence between coca-cola and the united states government showing how it was that they use their diplomacy in order to get this exemption on the use of the coca leaf that no other company had. and it is a beautiful book to look at, and he drinks coca-cola himself. but it will be, you know, given the fact that it is the most popular soft drink in the world

and one of the biggest companies in the world, a lot of people are interested in knowing a little bit more. >> i wanted to ask you about john mcarthur upcoming book, the outrageous barriers to democracy in america, why the progressive presidency. >> the book is written by, as@ you mentioned, rick macarthur.@@ he was the publisher and kind o@ the savior of hartford magazine@ the head of the macarthur foundation.@ there are two, not the big, with the other foundation that rescued harper's magazine and continues to make that suc@h a@@ great and important magazine@ have left. he is from chicago. and chicago politics, he really wanted to talk about how the obama presidency exemplified that one person just can't do it

anymore. the system is great. and even someone like obama who seemed like a progressive person and made a lot of promises about politics, just cannot deliver in the system anymore. and this is actually a follow-up to a previous book that had been done called you can't be president. that was actually the title because he thought that really, if you are not in the right circle, you were not going to get there the matter who you were and what it looked like. there would be no third-party movement, no dark horse sweeping in. it is basically going to be a certain kind of person with a certain kind of funding. the book really analyzes that and just to see if there is anything that we can do about that. >> an updated version of the book coming out as well. published that when it first came out? >> yes, we did. one reason that we wanted to update and revise it rather thoroughly, or the author did, is that, you know, when we first published that book the most

telling statistic that we cited in our promotion of it was that there were 800 million hungry people in the world and 1 billion of these people and the world. those numbers are worse now. over a billion hundred people and just over one-half billion of these@ people. and so in light of that and in light of things like the erin@ spring, which i know it looks like an advertisement for twitter in the news coverage, but it was actually about@@ hundred people. a lot of the things that we@@@ talked about, roger talked about in the first book, they have@@ really activated and energized the arab spring, so we wanted to bring all of that. it was a good deal more to be said about that situation. ♪ finally, david mcconnell. >> david mcconnell is an author. he has been known as a fiction writer. he has written a novel and a short story collection. and this is his first nonfiction

book which is called desire and rage. this is a really, really interesting exploration of the overlapping and mixing of young male sexuality and violence. on the surface it might appear to be a book about hate crime because it is a case study of a number of examples in which game and were murdered by a cameraman but, however, it is not about hate crimes at all. it is a very elaborate and sensitive and insightful exploration of the killers. their backgrounds, but, also, looking at this mixture, at the roles that sensuality played in the crimes themselves. and young male hormones and energy. and it is really, it is a book

an incredibly proud to be publishing. a lot of these to all of them, actually, have been reported. think they are on that -- national cases. he traveled around across the country, you know, to many places to do his own research, speaker of the killers, speaker of the families. he has put together a portrait of these murders that is unlike any did you ever seen. at some point there is a remarkable, but the for the killers themselves in the way that he tells the story. not simply for the murders, but really human understanding of where these young men, you know, what landed them in prison or dead as murderers. >> this is book tv on c-span2. we are in new york city at the annual book publishers' convention. the convention center. we have been talking to two

independent publishers, johnny temple, founder and publisher. co-founder, co publisher. gentlemen, thank you. >> thank you. >> one of the imprints of the penguin publishing but is biking. joining us is there director of publicity, carolyn called barn. wanted to ask you about some of the books that are coming out in the fall of 2012 from viking. let's start with our friend to my kevin phillips. >> kevin phillips, you know him as a great historian and analyst. kevin phillips, an author coming out with 1775 this december. and what kevin does, he debunks the myth that 1776 was the watershed year for the american revolution. instead helixes 1775 as the pivotal year. all of the conflict was happening.

so it analyzes 1775. and in usual kevin phillips fashion, it is very nuanced, meticulous research. it will be controversial, as many of his books are. >> well, viewers are fans of kevin phillips. he did our in-depth program. you can go to booktv.org, and you can watch three hours of kevin phillips. go to the search function in the upper left-hand corner. i wanted to ask you also about another book that is coming out. this is mike hoffman's book. >> the party is over. i think this subtitle says it all. it says how the republicans went crazy, the democrats became useless, and the middle class got shafted. so the subtitle says it all. as many of your viewers know, a 28 year veteran of capitol hill, and he really just lays it all out and what is wrong with our government. >> is that coming up before the

election? >> is coming out early august just-in-time for all of the convention -- conventions and before the election. >> carolyn the marjorie, did i say that correctly? >> estimate caroline the marjorie, american lady. it is a biography on susan mary alpha through american aristocrat. she was married to joe alpha, and she was georgetown, washington d.c. socialite. kissinger once said that more decisions and things were made in her living room than in the white house. she really brought so many movers and shakers in the u.s. and the world together. it is a real delight. >> and the new biography, and that just come out? >> i believe so. there is a play on broadway as well. >> john lithgow. >> exactly. ♪ what should we know about viking? how old is viking, how long has

it been around? >> oh, jeez. no, i think it is something like 79 years. i should know the exact -- i should know the first date, and i don't. i'm sorry. i know the logo is rockwell kent, the beautiful viking ship. >> what kind of titles to you look for? what kind of thought this? >> award winning, nonfiction, literary fiction, but we also enjoy the commercial fiction as well. it is a wide breadth of newsmakers. and we really focus on books and authors that will help the dialogue and learn more and start, you know, getting people curious. >> we are here at book expo america, the book publishing industry annual convention in new york city. how important is a convention like this to your business? >> i think it is incredibly important, especially now when

everybody is talking about the physical book, that e-book. it is all about reading, getting excited about the book. i mean, look at all of these great covers, walking over to the other. and just hearing what people are excited about. it is really important to get the dialogue going. >> as director of publicity how is your job chased with the advent of the book? ..

>> he talks about reverse engineering of the brain. he completely understands the brain and how that will help us create new technology. and also future machines. it is fascinating. >> we have been talking with carolyn coleburn, director of publicity at viking press. >> the tv is on location here at the annual publishers convention in new york city. joining us here on our book tv said is thank you, who is the founder of publishers marketplace and publishers lunch and he is going to be talking

about some of the books coming out in 2012. >> publishers marketplace and publishers lunch is a daily newsletter. publishers marketplace.com is the companion website. they use it to get business done with each other. >> are the subscription? >> there is a paid subscription and free subscription option. the door is open to all, but the heaviest users are paid. >> what is your background? >> i have spent my entire career in book publishing. for many years i have had a book world equivalent of an independent producer in the film business. i would create and produce books that other major publishers would not publish. i did that for about 15 years under my own company. i transitioned into telling

other people about publishing about a decade ago. right before the first internet bubble of first. >> has it been successful for you? >> and has been very successful. it has been very fun and stimulating. it has let need to know thousands of people very well. it is a very dynamic time in book publishing, so if you like change in the future, if you like transitions, the job i have created for myself is an exciting one to have because i get to help everybody else in the world learn about that change, it and also, apply to their own business. >> michael cader, he has put together a new look item for this year. tell us what it is. >> it looks like a physical book that you're holding it up, but java center is the only place

that it is physically available. this is available for people for passionate readers at home. the consumer version of this is called buzz book 2012. it is available on every major e-book platform. it is available as a free download, and we think it is the same thing that happens at the job center every year. which is to talk about some of the big books that are going to be published this fall. >> what are some of the books featured? >> we have about 35 books in all. on the nonfiction side, we have new memoirs, which is heavily anticipated by many young fans. in fact, the excerpt is already become the subject of hundreds of posts on the neil young and board. we have other nonfiction.

we have a lot of very good fiction books as well. there are several great names. one has written his debut novel, so we have excerpts from all their books. we also have very well-known authors. as well as a lot of discovery authors, authors who are writing their first book, but who are being entered into the book publishing world and may cost and impact and their material may resonate with readers. we thought was very important to make sure that we included a section about the book trade so readers know what is happening. young adult literature has really exploded. to the point that it is not

being read by teens, but also crossover adult leaders. we finished her well-known authors, such as [inaudible name], again, a lot of new discovery voices. some publishers stand a chance of being the next stephanie meyer or young adults discovery. >> you put this together, you approach the publishers come is that correct and asked them if they would be willing to submit a book? >> we did. we came up with a dual nomination process. we approached a journalistically driven method efforts, the staff wanted to look at things from as we need to do for ourselves to get ready and see what looks like some of the big books. we drove our own lengthy list of candidates. in fact, the book also includes an essay at the beginning that mention hundreds of books. we did reproduce excerpts from

books we think are notable, but we wanted to follow this book recommendations in entirety. we cross-referenced goes against what we have found on our own. we talked to booksellers and other influences. we also wanted to make sure that we had balance there so we can have more than three to for excerpts. we had seven or eight independent houses represented along with giant publishers. we wanted to survey the breadth of the literary landscape. from small publishers to be publishers. >> were publishers able -- eager to have their books? >> i think that the publishers recognize that the industry has been moved from [inaudible] there's nothing that makes bea more excited than the authors

themselves. bea itself is inviting a thousand passionate leaders to the convention this year for the first time. it occurred to us that we need to build this bridge between the industry and the readers to get the industry going. on the one hand, this helps the industry do business better pray they come to the convention knowing that some of the books are and have read some of them for themselves so they know what they want to find and which offers they want to talk about, which authors they might want to have come to their stores. those people coming from the outside world are all going to get them help and help them share in the excitement. in turn, when we were talking to publishers about the idea, we said the minute we put this in regular bookstores, too, and they got very excited. they said that is where we are all trying to get to is to find a way of producing an early alert system that lets readers participate? the website to get it if viewers want to download this to their

readers, what is the website? >> they can find out information about it at publishers marketplace.com. they can go to their e-book store of choice and look for buzz book 2012. it is a free download. it is on every major e-book platform and many minor e-book platforms. we tried to distribute as widely as possible, rather than to just go through the two or three stories that people might know about. >> when will it be taken down? when the link be taken down? >> the link is available, we can't say on sale, until december. it covers the book releases anywhere from late august through january 2013. the special value of getting to look at things ahead of publication should last for many months. we are talking about it a lot because it is convention time when we just released it, people don't have to read it now, they can enjoy it for months to come and it will give them a preview

of books that are still on their way. michael cader, at this point, do e-books outsell physical books, has a cross that threshold? >> not nearly in total. if you look at the industry as a whole, you comprise roughly 25% of revenue. that changes all the time. the percentage is higher is in the brand-new bestsellers. we're often it complies more than half of the sale. particularly for fiction. nonfiction has less, somewhat. there's something about the fact narrative versus fiction and the form. where books are biggest coming have to think about what part of the publishing business you are talking about to what is your personal level of e-books and physical books? >> i read both. for my newsletter, i have been reading digitally for over a decade. that is how i get my news and processor. i get a lot of looks from

publishers, they are starting to send digital galleries now, but there's something about a printed gallery that helps. books that are early on the market, i read on a variety of readers. i need to test out every reader and know every platform and understand the future that people are playing with. i really go back and forth between the two. >> one more time, the website? >> publishers marketplace.com ended is called buzz book 2012. >> we are talking with michael cader who is the founder of publishers market place. >> this is one of the oldest book publishers in the united states and joining us here at book expo america in new york city is sarita varma, who is the director of publicity for ffsg. we wanted to talk with her about

the new books coming out in fall 2012. sarita varma, i want to start with william chase's new book, bill and hillary. >> yes, it is written by william chase. he's a professor at duke. he gives us a fascinating portrait of their relationship. and how hillary supports bill during his various personal crises, actually afforded her the opportunity to increase her platform publicly and in turn, the sinking happened with bill. it is a look at this new partnership in a modern presidential relationship between the president and the first lady. it is really fascinating and has insider tidbits. >> is there a market for more quentin books? >> you know, i think there is just from the initial sort of release of the very early editions of the book. people cannot put it down. it is just fascinating and the insight you get about their

family history, their personal stories, and their extensive interviews with stephanopoulos and ruben and major players that are still out in the public sphere today. and i think it will change the way we look at the relationship between presidents and their first partners going forward. >> is it coming out before the election? >> is coming out september 4, just-in-time. >> patrick tyler has a new book out. "new york times" reporter, correct? >> yes, he wrote a book on the middle east worse. the new book is really looking at the history of israel and making the argument that the military has always been a large part of the strategy for the country in a very essential way. they basically need to come to terms with military history, and the role of the military and the government in order to achieve peace. it is a complicated situation, and he looks at it through a new

lens. >> finally, i wanted to ask about the book on 1958 chinese facts. >> yes, the great famine. it is really quite fascinating book on the great famine. he is a member of the communist party, he has unprecedented access to archives, and his father was a victim of the famine. he goes back, looks at the statistics and records and re-creates public-policy. which had led to the so-called natural disaster. the famine really could've been avoided order happened to a much lesser extent. it is just a fascinating look at an unknown story. >> sarita varma, what book are you excited about that is coming out? >> there are so many. one but we haven't talked about

is robert sullivan, mike american revolution, which is a mashup of looking up back at the american revolution and reclaiming it for new jersey and new york. and revisiting history through modern-day lens of reenactment and legacy of the revolution today. he is crying of a quirky writer, isn't he? >> yes, he is. a very wide-ranging writer. >> this is book tv on c-span 2, and we have been talking with sarita varma, director of publicity. >> you're watching book tv's and book expo america coverage. for more information visit book expo america.com. >> here on c-span 2, we want to introduce you to two

independent bookstores. mitch kaplan is the founder of books & books and the miami book fair international, and we want to introduce you to betsy burton. betsy burton owns a bookstore called the king's english in salt lake city, utah. what is it like in 2012 to be a bookstore owner? what are the main challenges? >> it is exciting. finer place in the market with e-books has been tricky. but we are fully aware we need to be in the market and we are doing everything we can and we are succeeding. still, books are not bad. dedicated readers are buying them all the time. >> when it comes to the e-books,

you obviously use a brick-and-mortar store with brick-and-mortar books. how has e-books affected your business? have you seen it -- did you see a drop-off when they first came and? >> actually, we did not. that's one of the ironies of the press. we have a website,, we sell on our website, business did not go down. over time, it might generate more sales. the only problem we are having is the kind of monopoly that one unnamed person has created. but really, books are selling very well in our market is up. >> do you have a regular customer base? who comes here stored in a. >> we have always had a regular customer base. we have wonderful kid section where there is a literary section. we have had this loyal customer base. the last couple of years, we started in the '90s, we have been trying to educate people

about the value of local stores in the community spirit we have gotten real community support across the city, and it comes from that campaign. this is happening all over the country. i think it is because it is a really strong national movement now. >> betsy burton, tell us briefly about the king's english bookstore, where it is located. >> it is a small store. just a little over 2000 square feet. but it is in a small house, abrams, which is a lot more shelf space than that size you suggest. a walkable neighborhood. great restaurants around. we are in the business district, we fit into the model that the city cares about. we just have a very loyal following that maybe we wouldn't have if we were in a mall. we feel really good about her location. the 35-year-old bookstore is

great. i just feel like, you know, we can have a more wonderful location and store it, and i couldn't have had a more wonderful career than the one i've had. >> mitch kaplan, books & books is a little bit bigger than 2000 square feet? >> we do have stores that are 2000 square feet. i think our stores are wonderful. but there isn't a store in america that is it's charming. when you go in, you go through rooms in the house, and the bookseller had been able to put that aside and be a browser. it which is what i love to do. i think in your conversation, carrying it on, the other reason why people are beginning to understand why independent matters is because of the fact that so many stories like betsy

burton's and mine, have been part of the community for so long and we have become a part of the fabric of the community. part of the mission is to give back to the community. you know, when we have authors come to our store, they go to the schools. it is the perfect example of how a bookstore to get involved to affect generations in the community as well. that goes beyond quark commerce. part of this is to get our customers to understand the value is not always measured by the dollars you save. value can be measured in other ways. if you support an independent bookshop and you are not getting a discount online, you're getting other things for the 50% the that you pay. you are getting authors come in and you are not paying to see them. you are getting access to book fairs. you're getting remarkable staff

and remarkable faces that you can come and spend your time with. i think that message is beginning to get through. particularly with the demise of orders. i think that is a wake-up call for a lot of the people who read. they said look, we have to support the stores that we like because a big chain like that, if they can go under, then my neighborhood bookstore mike horner as well. >> so there has been a sea change, going on, i think as well. >> what about publishers? you publishers treat independent bookstores the same as the one at wal-mart, costco, barnes & noble? >> they treat us differently, but i think that publishers of late are beginning to understand how important we are. in a way, we are the marketing arm of internet sales because we are so good at marketing. we collectively come across the country in all our communities, see such incredible pr for books that we love. we are the ones that create the

buzz. one book is coming out in august and nobody has ever heard of it. we are the kind of people that create the buzz and then the sales go elsewhere -- some of the sales. our loyal customers continue to give us the sales that we deserve. >> you know, this is not something that all of us woke up to either. the american book association, i have been involved with it. it has made a distinct plan. to link a lot of this in the us as independent booksellers. if you walk into an independent store and you see the selection or the indy bound collection or the indy bound the bestseller list, these are people -- these people come from a process of

being included. >> have you thought about going into publishing with yourself? >> we did. in miami, we published two books. one was a dark christmas story. you will be able to get it again this coming christmas. the other is a limited edition of a wonderful book by henry flagler in the building of the railway to key west. it is called last train to paradise. >> to have more books you publish? >> no, i'm trying to figure out the model, and i have some things that even at this convention i have been talking to some people about. i think there may be some more in the future from books and books press. >> betsy burton come have you enter that world? >> i have entered it by writing

but not by selling. you try to look at every angle for these places to fit and you try to make it stand out very creatively. >> do think there is a difference between selling books in south florida and salt lake city and the kinds of books they sell? >> i think good literary books tend to be similar in many ways, but for instance, mitch kaplan has the best art and photography collection in the country. we don't have the kind of clientele that can afford that kind of a section. but we have extraordinary children's section. we have a kind of divide just have to people are mormon, half the people are not. as we try to bridge the gap, it makes selling -- a difference in

selling. >> that does make a difference. >> absolutely. >> there was one book out on mitt romney. i think it was michael finish of the boston globe. the real mitt romney book. is that a book that you could read? >> yeah. >> we have sold 10. when i say that we are really going on. although a lot of people shop in our store, critically we are probably a little more liberal than that. it is not so much that we buy in terms of customer expectation, we know what they are going to buy. it sets the inventory. an interesting thing about all of our stores is that we really curate our inventory. we know what we are going to sell, we know where customers are, and we buy accordingly. >> miami is a world within itself.

it is a very different place. what we sell their might not sell in many other cities. we have taken -- we have a particular sensibility when you walk into a store, miami is so diverse in so many ways. we do carry a wider selection of all different kinds, all across the spectrum of every store, and maybe a little less targeted. also, a collection of art, architecture design, all of that is something that gives off a unique vibe. it is a miami that is very interested in design. the way it looks to latin america is also a very interesting thing. so we find ourselves specializing in those kinds of books. >> transport to see more books and books stores is being opened

in the near future? >> we have to resource that we own in the south florida area. then we have created these partnerships in which there are four other locations that we have stories where we don't own, but we are helping facilitate an independent locally owned situation. we just opened a store in the cayman islands, westhampton beach, we have an airport store and a store in a museum. but we are actually looking at a community in key west, we are kind of looking at possibly opening there. and also, some other communities that don't have independent stores right now. >> betsy burton, dc that potential? and.

>> you know, this is kind of ironic. i do a lot of writing and radio reviews along with the norm, because we reach out in ways that are not physical. iradio is a satellite radio reaches out across the country. once we get up and running, i can see that as we are selling. i also feel solid and our community. business is up 11 or 12% this year. this is against the argument that the economy is sinking. as i said, the local movement is getting bigger all the time. i really believe that we are solid, and i think that the ones that aren't so polished are the ones that are the most affected by this. >> how much business is done via website or e-books people? do people come to your website to support the local store?

>> absolutely, they purchased both. >> yet. yeah, it is going come actually. you know, i think that what becky is saying is true. we have had to take back who we are, what direction we are going and try to find her own special things to things that we do. book publishing, i started a company in los angeles, and we started a book to film company. we are all trying to do what i can do. like for instance, betsy burton has a radio program. it is all based and all about the stories. it is all the nerds. and i think that is what defines us, our store is celebrating its

30th anniversary this year. we wouldn't be here unless we are passionate. they're a lot easier and less stress always. to earn a living. [laughter] than the independent bookstore in world. >> there is no better life. will either of you be stopping any of the amazon published titles? >> we are small, we don't have to take everything. that is our excuse. >> actually, we are doing as we did journaling. customers are asking us toward it. amazon, barnes & noble started carrying it, to be specific. mitch kaplan, owner of books & books. what's on your summer reading list? >> i just finished a book called heading out to wonderful.

it takes place in virginia. just published this week. there is a book that is sitting one right on my desk. [inaudible] there's a -- another novel coming out in the summer in the fall, as well. >> betsy burton, the king's english bookstore. the lake city, utah. there is a book coming out in august? >> there's a book coming out in august that is one of my favorite things in the world. it is southern colorado, it is a little bit post- apocalyptic, but not in that sort of negative and driveway, but the way that most of these books are. he is a wonderful person who is

very smart. there is another book coming in november. one of the best things he has written. the best he has. i can't say too much about the plot. it appears to be this young woman is the main character. it is one of the books that you talk about it too much, it gives you away and gives away the whole book. but i will say that it is the most stunning book about novels and their importance that i think ever read. one more that is coming out really later, i think maybe a new book called benediction. he is a gentleman who wrote plainsong. it is just beyond wonderful. the best piece of work ever written. >> is their book that you can read? >> there's a book that i can't wait to read. it is coming out in october.

all of us just can't wait. there is another one, and for those of you in new york, it is called new york and master. i don't get a chance to look at it by gene simmons, and it takes place in new york city in new amsterdam. there is a murderer and it doesn't work that book. >> i will throw in another one. there is a book called the keeper of forgotten causes. and he has a new book coming out, but the name i can't remember, but i love that book and my whole staff loved it. it is norwegian, but it doesn't have the violence and thrill of the reagans had. it is a very thoughtful and very good read. and they book that made you laugh until i cried was a new book coming out, and i hope you

make -- it makes you laugh as hard as i did. >> last week we talked about a book called sons of liberty. it is the pre-revolutionary war through. >> i have to say is [inaudible name], bring up the body's book is really early in, brilliant, layered. or historical. it is heart stopping the whole time you're reading it. >> we have been talking with betsy burton, who is the co-owner of the king's english in salt lake city. and mitch kaplan, books & books, miami, and founder. thank you both so much.

>> now joining us on booktv, is scott moyers come he is the publisher of penguin press. we want to find out some of the new titles coming out from penguins press. i'm going to start with the patriarch. what is this? >> this is an extraordinary story. ted kennedy, before his death, reached out to david not soft, author of andrew carnegie's biography, among other things, and gave him an extraordinary offer, which is to give him was of access to the kennedy family papers, the papers of his father, joseph kennedy, which had never been shared with any biographers. there were no strings attached. he spent years digging through this archive and started from scratch. one of the things these papers allow them to do, of course, is to get a feeling of closer to the person that joseph kennedy

was. this is the first time they were able to follow the money. the kennedy family origin has been a kind of blackbox. david is able to put together how joseph kennedy today. hollywood is a big part of the story, in which it has never been understood before. we all know about wall street and some of the myths, some are even more true than we might have thought. others let go. i think in the end, why ted kennedy, we can ask them now, but why did ted kennedy picked david nassau? he saw a model for the ark of his father's life. he made a great portion and then spent the rest of his life figuring out ways to do good with it or do things with it. of course, in judge kennedy's case, one of the things he did

was help make his son president. that story is involved. it is fascinating and there's some real news breaks in this book. >> another book coming out as well? >> the memoir of global statecraft. it is for a man and a reputation as a diplomat. it is delightfully unvarnished. there is no secret that he really have like he does over the bush demonstration in iran, and issues of the state of israel, he will go to the lemon ice invasions. uncheck he will go to the lebanon invasion. it has to do with limitations in power. it reminds us how much the u.n.

does do to improve the lives of the world. his account of what this organization does, and its role in the world today, it is an argument for it, in a sense, it laments for what it can do, and then at the end of the day, it is a great statesman, with great power on the world stage, it is also some of the most dramatic issues. people telling stories, telling you it is true about some of the great characters that he had worked with. >> this book and mr. nassau's book coming out in 2012? >> that's right. one before and one after the election. >> a nobel prize award winner. >> this is the story of tremont

and his country and how was torn apart. it is in part of a coming-of-age, and it become an age book himself, and for his country. how tragic it was that it turned into a malign force. it is a beautiful book, turn to, that is about the role of the wider in the conference. what is the artist's role -- one needs to be committed? what is it to stand up and coming you know, speak to those who can't speak. this novel still sells 250,000 copies a year.

this memoir is a magnificent capstone to his greater. >> how is this all? >> he is somewhat weakened. he is in his mid- 80s. as you know, he's and we welter, his brain is still going strong as ever. we are going to have to be pretty careful and limited, but i think what we will do, at least i hope what we will do will create a great interest in this book. >> finally, a former "washington post" writer, has another military book coming out. >> he does. in a way, it is a culmination of 25 years covering history. it is a study of world war ii to

the present, really looking at the art of the general, what is it to be a general, what differentiates her generals from not so great generals. one of the things in this book is that in 2005, tom is on what they call a [inaudible name] and going over to the battleground. they were telling the story of the battle and tom was struck by the fact that the general who led the invasion nationally, was nonetheless fired weeks later by omar bradley. this story tom heard a month after an essay by an army colonel rocketed around the military, which was said, today, in 2005, a private suffers more grief for it losing arrival. it is really true. being a general is really hard, and it should be expected that

many people fail at it. that command is famously hard. the american military had a tradition of firing generals and there wasn't any shame in it. the military has completely lost that tradition. generals are only fired by the president for political reasons now. tom wanted to understand what happened to the culture, so he follows the generals from world war ii to korea to iraq and afghanistan, following the genealogy and looking at what it is to be general and why is it that -- i can't read the whole book for you, but it was basically said this is exactly what we need. we need an institution and to ask ourselves these questions but her leadership and how we hold her leadership accountable. this is a book about how organizations need to hold themselves accountable for their performance, or else they stop becoming effective. it is a book about the american

military which is great. it has all sorts of wonderful ramifications for anybody in the leadership world. anyone who works in an organization that needs to improve or die. >> we have been talking with scott moyers, who is publisher of penguin press. some of the upcoming titles. >> on your screen is a new book that is coming out in september of 2012, lynn povich is the author and it is called "the good girls revolt." who are the good girls, lynn povich? >> i was a good girl. i went to work as a researcher. basically i was a fact checker. all the guys were reporters and writers. we stayed and fact checked and then one day we realized that there is something wrong with this picture. on the day, we did a cover story

on women's freedom spread we sued them and we knew you'd get the publicity because the publicity would give them more than a case going to the. >> siewert at newsweek from 1965 to 1970. at what point did you start talking with other women in the office? >> we started organizing in the fall of 1969. one woman did and believed that it was illegal, and she called the eeoc and they said yes, it is. as we were organizing, newsweek decided to do a cover story. the story was -- [inaudible]

it is picked up in italy and london and it made a big/. >> how long did the situation last? >> well, immediately -- and then we saw again in 1972. the first lawyer was eleanor holmes norton who is now the first congresswoman from the district of colombia. her lawyers to negotiate with us. that was joke alfano who ended up being the terry of atw. we settled in the spring of 73 and they promised again to higher and promote. at this time, we had a golden

timetable. we had a third of the writers and reporters to be women and a third of the researchers to be men. >> what was your result? >> in august of 1975, i was promoted to senior editor. i was the first woman senior editor. it is a story about a group of good girls, a group of women who were raised in the 1940s and 1950s, who came of age in the 60s and had these questions, and ultimately challenged all the things that we were raised to believe of what the woman's role is in the world. the impact it would have on us. again, what has changed for young women today. >> when he became a senior editor, he became part of management at that time. was that difficult for you? >> the men who were the writers,

they supported the women. the senior editors and management, which often happens in organizations, is where a lot of the determination took place. the editor in chief was part of the cause pretty quickly. but the other senior editors had a very hard time. women who tried out as writers for them failed often. when i was in meetings, the first woman in a meeting room filled with men, it was really hard for me. i have learned to speak up and i had to learn to fight for my story. one of the things that i learned that a lot of the men who claimed they were fighting were actually very passive. if their story was rejected, they just rolled over. they came back and said we thought for your story, but there were a lot of passive men. even realize how passive men could be as well. a lot of learning experiences. >> has it, over the years,

changed for women? >> it has gotten much better. there is no longer a research category at newsweek at all. young women are hired as news reporters right away. tina brown took over as the editor. she's the first female editor in >> she was the first newsmagazine for an newsweek and first female editor in chief. there are still times of determination to make it harder for women today. it still exists, often about marginalization, not being heard, the kinds of stories women are trying to write for. there's still a lot to be done in the workplace in general, as well as in journalism. i just read a report this morning that said that men who

are in female occupations now, because of the recession, they're becoming nurses and secretaries and so forth, they are rising faster than female occupations than women aren't. >> are. >> is there a reason? >> i think the perception of men and how they can seem a more competent still exists. i do think women still have trouble putting themselves forward. >> what have you learned over the years about making sure that your voice is heard? >> well, i have learned to speak out, and i have learned to put myself forward and to put other women forward and their ideas. a lot of women have styles that are very modest and humble, and a lot of men always say, come out right, i can do it. but the question of who does the better job, and we have to get

someone who can do the job and who is really capable. >> why did you write this book? >> i wrote this book because they sell story should be told. we were the first women in the media and no one knows about this. i think that history is important. when young women today at newsweek found out about our story and learned that they weren't the only ones who are feeling marginalized, it changed their lives. it does make a difference. you can't really look forward without understanding where you come from. >> we have been talking with chen eight from newsweek. formerly of newsweek. "the good girls revolt" is the name of the book. how the women of newsweek sue their bosses and changed the workplace. thank you for being with us. >> i enjoyed it. >> crown publishing is a

division of random house publishing. joining us now with the director of publicity is campbell wharton. mr. campbell wharton, what looks to have coming-out? >> we have some very exciting books this fall. we have rod stewart's memoir, which is highly anticipated celebrity book this fall. we have the first book from the george w. bush institute, which is the policy think tank of the presidential library. and we have great that builds the markham memoir, the series of hilarious and controversial rants. greg is a rising star at the box unchecked fox news channel. and we have a big one from the biggest authority on education. it is coming out at the end of august. >> your publishing both the bush institute and jonathan's book? >> that's right. we do both sides of the aisle. we do george w. bush and barack

obama. we do things for everyone. >> what is the policy book coming out from the bush institute and who wrote it? >> it is called [inaudible name], and it is a series of essays from well-known economist, nobel prize winners, about how we can achieve 4% growth. it is a blueprint for the economy, president bush himself has written a forward for. look for this one. it is the first one from the bush institute. there will be a lot of noise this summer about it. >> is coming out for the election? >> yes, it is coming out before the election. that solution can be thrust into the dialogue this fall. >> i wanted to ask you about one other thing that crown is doing. it was in politico that crown is doing more politically oriented instant e-books. we are going to feed the instant appetite for political junkies. instant e-books as a way for us to be that appetite instantly.

we have a really great slate of political writers that can write a few chapters very quickly about current events. and we can get that out instantly for 99 cents or $2.99. we just had one just came out about how romney secured the nomination and what the obama campaign is using to run against romney. that is $2.99. they were able to write that in a small time frame, and it feeds that insatiable appetite of political junkies. >> campbell wharton, crown publishing, thank you for the update. >> thank you. >> you are watching an interview from book tv's recent trip to new york city for book expo america. the publishing industry's annual trade show. for more information, visit book expo america.com. >> you are watching book tv on c-span 2. forty-eight hours of nonfiction books, every weekend. we are on location in new york city at the annual book publishers convention, book expo

america. it is held at the javits center in new york city. we are pleased to be joined by two publishers. first, the president and publisher of grove atlantic, and transcend, executive vice president and publisher publisher of simon & schuster. tillman, thank you for being on book tv, we appreciate it. morgan, how would you describe the state of the publishing industry today? >> well, exciting. there is a lot going on. i think that we are going to go through a big shift because we moved to digital. it causes a lot of opportunities and questions. we have big new players and forces at work. i think all of us are trying to figure out, you know, what to do. the main thing, i think is that the best thing we can do is [inaudible] >> what percentage of revenues come from electronic books right

now? >> probably through grove atlantic this year, it will be about 30%. >> do you see that getting 50% at some point? >> i think eventually. the growth rate has slowed down. is an adult works publisher, we do not publish children's books. in our world, i think that the physical book is probably going to stay around for a good while. >> jonathan karp, same question. i often see that 30% number, and it's a good number, and i'm going to stick to it. there was some research done i think by a guy named jack would soon come and she found that 50% of the people surveyed in independent bookstores were buying the readers. about 50%, 50% of them so that

they still wanted to keep buying hardcover books. they were in bookstores, and you could count for that -- but the key% are not buying the readers and do not intend to. i have seen that since it has been quoted a couple times. i don't know whether that number will change as behavior changes. i do also think that a lot of people are going to keep buying regular hardcover and paperback books. >> has the publishing world stabilized in the last year or so as opposed to the last five years? there seems to be a lot more turmoil in the last five years. >> you know, i didn't feel that much turmoil, personally, because i wake up every morning thinking about what the book should be. that has not changed. a lot of this coverage, digital publishing, it is a transformative technology. but it hasn't radically changed the content very much. nor did it change what makes people great.

i still wake up in the morning thinking about the same thing. how can we make it look better, who should be writing a book, how can we make people aware of the book. so it hasn't felt like a tumultuous of overtime to me, as it may feel were some people covering it. >> what i'm trying to do is just watch everything that is going on and make smart decisions. you know, i agree with jonathan karp. there are a couple of things that we have to recognize with the move to digital books. one, it is a qualitatively different experience to read a book on in the reader versus a paper back book. it is not the same either way. the other thing is that we have to realize that the book readers range in age. ..

>> guest: wow, interesting question. i guess i'm satisfied. i mean, right now it's a fairly significant windfall and income for meshers. if you look at the results that are publicly traded, almost all of them are showing pretty robust profits over the last 24 months. so, you know, i think that we came later to digital than magazines or newspaper or music. i think we don't have a subscription or advertiser base, so that protected us some.

we figured out how to get paid. piracy is not a significant problem for us yet. you know, and, again, it's, you know, a kid is downloading music, and that's a different customer than a 45 or 55-year-old person buying a hard cover book. i think that we need to recognize that we're going to have a different experience. >> host: just to pick up on that, jonathan karp, there's a generation now that expects music to be free, movies to be free. as a publisher, are you seeing that people expect their books to be free as well? >> guest: i haven't perceived that. and i think that the clientele of the typical book, there's sort of a conventional wisdom in the publishing industry that the part that sells to teenagers or to people in their 20s, now,

obviously, there's a boom right now in young adult, but i think parents are buying a lot of those books for kids. and so i'm not sure that books have been as vulnerable as music and film. i mean, i notice i go on youtube all the time when i want to hear a song, and i don't pay for it. but i'm still buying books. so this is from my own personal experience, i don't see it. >> host: why the boon in ya books? >> guest: well, i think one reason is that they're online. and so the social media is communicating expressions about those books so fast. they have more time. so when they hear about something that's interesting, i think they all just flock to it faster. i think that it's easier to communicate enthusiastic word of mouth for young adult work. now, there's this phenomenon of adult readers buying young adult

books. it's like the hunger games or harry potter which i haven't been able to figure out that except that, i guess readers are hooked, and it doesn't really matter. maybe also the line between what young adult is and what is allegedly adult is not as pronounced as it used to be. >> host: are you publishing any of those books? >> guest: we're not. so i can't speak with a lot of authority. i do know as far as twilight, there's a famous story she tell, about being on an airplane reading and knowing when she gets off that plane, she has to buy that book. i think she responded to twilight just the way any reader would. >> host: what about the use of social media, particularly when it comes to pr and marketing of a book? >> guest: well, um, i'm 57 years old, and i don't tweet. and so i rely on the young people in my office to do it. i think that, you know, it's one of the things i'm trying to educate myself and my staff about. i think what the internet has

offered us is a way to narrow cast that we've never been able to do and a way to in a cost effective manner potentially reach the audience that might be interested in the book which has always been one of the biggest challenges for the book publisher. i know you've had karl marlantes on a couple of times. and when we had his first novel, we made great use at simon simo& schuster, he was the editor of the book, and we could go and target the potential vietnam veterans or people interested in that issue, the same as what it's like to go to war on his book on combat experience and how our society needs to direct more attention to preparing young men and women to go off to combat. we're able to identify and communicate with potential audience for that book in a way that we never have been able to. as far as the social media, i'm not certain, you know, how to use it most effectively. we try a lot of different things. it helps particularly if the

author is very engaged. that's what -- i think that the author has more opportunity to control hid -- his or her own by being active on social media. >> guest: i agree with that. we're publishing arnold schwarzenegger's autobiography, he has two million followers, he said what would you like me to write about? are there photos that you'd like to see in the book? and hundreds of thousands -- thousands of people actually responded. so that's one way you can communicate. we have other authors who just connect very easily through social media. a lot of novelists do it really well. they're online a lot, and sometimes it keeps them from writing their book. it's a definitely more effective way of getting authors to connect with readers. and i think where holden caufield witched he could write a -- wished he could write a

letter to the author, now anybody can, and if they don't hear back in a day, they're annoyed. >> host: jonathan karp, when did you get started in publishing? >> guest: 1989. random house, i went to work for one of the best editors in the business, and i got the job because i could type 100 words per minute. [laughter] >> host: did you plan on going into publishing? >> guest: you know, it's funny because there were several books that i read that made me want to go into publishing. one of them was power broker, and it's nice to see robert caro out with a new one. one of them was the cider house rules, and i was a reporter for the miami herald, i was in miami. and reading those two books was so much more profound than any of the journalism that i was doing, that i thought i should just go into publishing and have a deeply immersive experience and learn what real writing is about. and the great, you know, the great experience has been that

i'm now actually john irving's editor. and it's been one of the best experiences of my life. >> host: well, mr. karp, as a former newspaper reporter you've probably got a book in you, right? >> guest: i don't know. when i was a newspaper reporter, i was -- one of my last stories was i was sent to cover a garbage dump that was on fire. so i think maybe i got out at the right time. >> host: morgan, how did you get into the publishing world? >> guest: um, i got into publish anything 1977. i always say that i was, i was at school in between the hippies and the yuppies, so just getting through school was an accomplishment. i was at stanford, and stanford be has always had a great writers' program. and some of the people that were there at the time when i was there, raymond carver, richard hugo, none of them could get published. and one of them told me about the publishing graduate course at radcliffe, now in columbia, and i signed up and went to it,

and it sort of opened my eyes to this whole world. i grew up in middleton. you don't grow up thinking about where books come, i was an avid reader, but my first job was as a reader. and i could read very fast. and so my first day i came, and i read three books in one day. the editor-in-chief said give us two paragraphs of summary, one paragraph of evaluation and then say, yes, no or maybe. and i looked at him and said what good is maybe? and he said you're going to make a good editor. [laughter] but then the mistake was i read three books the first day, and he came -- and the next day he said how late did you stay up? i said, about six. so i set the standard to where every day i had to read three books. i did that for about six weeks, and my eyes were about to fall out of my head from speed reading all day long every day, and then i became an editorial assistant. >> host: what is one of the books you worked on early in your career? >> guest: kurt vonnegut's jailbird. he was one of my heroes.

slaughterhouse five, you know, that book was very, very important. and kurt had never had a proper editor. and his publisher was a man named seymour lawrence who was one of the first imprint publishers, and he had seen some of my readers' reports. and one day he said write me an editorial memo about it, and i became kurt's editor. i was 23, and he was 56 -- >> host: what was that relationship like? >> guest: he was wonderful. he was a dear friend, and i was so lucky to have him in my life. of course, it gave my career a huge boost. the book came out, became a number one bestseller and got rave reviews. very, very little create to the editor, but it gave me a lot of self-confidence, and he remained a friend until the end of his life. jonathan karp, who's an early author you worked with? >> maya pluto. i was about 27 years old, and the publisher of random house needed a guy to read this novel

that he was writing. and i read it in one big, delighted gulp one weekend, and i wrote a ten-page editorial memo. and i got invited to help edit him in las vegas. >> host: that's where he lived? >> guest: that's where he did his best work. [laughter] so we went to a casino, and he had the best suite in the hotel because he was a high roller. and, you know, i was walking around, and we edited during the day, and we gambled at night. and i never gambled before, and he wanted to play back rat. so -- back a rat. he gave me a hundred bucks which i then lost. and he gave me another hundred bucks and, fortunately, i made enough to pay him back. >> host: the $200? >> guest: yeah. meanwhile, he made about $7,000 on that run. so after evans left random house, he asked for me to be his editor. i was only about 30 years old at the time, and the only reason he

asked was because he thought i was good luck. [laughter] anyway -- >> host: have you been gambling since with him? >> guest: no, not after that. that was my last -- >> host: isn't that what we do for a living? >> guest: well, except for that. >> guest: that's why i don't need to gamble. >> guest: you told me a story, didn't you write -- >> guest: i did. i acquired less than zero. >> guest: i want to hear the story about that. >> guest: absolutely. i'm not sure i can use the language on television of what some of the editors wrote, but you used to have to send around a moon you script to simon and simon & schuster, and everybody would note their comments. and there were some pretty strong negative comments including one i can't repeat on the the air. but ending with if there is a market for this kind of book, it's time, by all means, it's time for me to resign. >> host: do you still send around those memos at simon & schuster? >> guest: that's what's so funny because i really want it to be a

place where editors like morgan can do whatever they want, and i find that story remarkable. >> guest: well, dan and dick, to their credit, you know, they said, look, this is why we have you here. you're 27 years old. i bought the book for, i think, $5,000 for world rights. and why not allow a young editor to take a chance now and again? that's why -- >> guest: exactly. that's really, the exciting thing is to let editors discover writers, and that's the best -- that's the reason we're here. >> host: so, jonathan karp, besides the e-book world that we're living in today, what other changes should we be looking out for in the next couple years in publishing? >> guest: well, you know, i'm interested in whether the attention span is getting shorter. and, i mean, if you were to look at writings from the previous century, it is longer. the books are longer, the sentences are longer. and so i wonder whether digital

will result in some books being shorter and perhaps in longer form journalism having more of a place in the culture than it does right now. i think magazines have cut back on their longer stories. so maybe the publishing industry can step in there at the 20-40,000-word length. i hope we can find a way to make people aware of shorter work. but at the same time i also, i'm also hopeful that books will be increasingly authoritative. i think because so much of the media is disposable and because there's so much information coming at people, i do hope and think that publishers will perhaps embrace a model of really putting their investments and their muscle behind authority. that's what i'd like to believe. >> host: well, we talked to a couple publishers here at the convention about instant e-books. is that something that simon &

schuster's looking into? >> guest: hardly at all, no. because, you know, we really are trying to publish the books that are going to last. and i think that it's hard to compete with "the new york times" or with cmn. cnn. so i don't see very much of that happening for us. >> host: morgan, what changes do you see coming down the road that we should be aware of? >> guest: you know, i agree with what jonathan says in terms of the form changing some. we've done one enhanced e-book or app with an australian scientist named tim flannery, he did a book called "here on earth." and it lent itself to sort of, you know, graphs and videos and putting a lot of the scientific stuff in. a new media called arcade sunshine came to us wanting to do something, and they produced a really brilliant piece. but what i experienced in using it was it was sort of like reading a book and watching a documentary at the same time. and i would rather read the book or watch the documentary.

so i think that somebody who's 23 probably is more fluent in multitasking or absorbing media in a different way. so i think the change in form will happen. if you look at network television or some of the fiction that's published now, 50 years ago those forms would have been seen as experimental and avant-garde and almost incomprehensible. but our attention span has shortened or speeded up or broadened, and so i think that form will be reflected. you know, but, again, i still think that the 100,000-word narrative does something no other medium can. if you want to understand al-qaeda, you read "the looming tower," and it explains it better than any other form explains it. and also if you want to enter that fictional world of harry potter, you suspend your disbelief, that's better than any other media. what i find interesting is young people aren't all going to

e-books right away. talking to some of my neff knews and nieces is they spend so much time in front of a screen as it is that they prefer ink and paper as a form. so, you know, a book has been around for a long time, and we may change the way we deliver them, change the way of the industry. i think publishers are going to have to examine closely what value they add and how they do it and be smart about it and get as efficient and more efficient as possible, but they're not going to go away. we're going to have books. >> guest: i think we have to become more of who we already are. i think that for a while publishers thought they could be all things to all people, and i think there's something really helpful about what's happening now. with all these people self-publishing -- with publishers, the real strength of publishers is their ability to focus on what they in -- believe in and books of real importance or just entertainment value. so there should be less of the

spaghetti against the wall syndrome where you're just, you know, sort of willy-nilly going off and doing whatever makes sense. and i think that the fact that the barrier to entry's so much lower now, it forces publishers to decide really what do you stand for, what are you behind? and i think that's a good thing. >> host: what are some of the upcoming books that simon simon& schuster has coming out in the fall? >> guest: ah, i love that question. [laughter] well, one of them is by called "paterno." joe pognaski is the most recent elected member of the sports writers' hall of fame, and he was with joe paterno writing the book before the scandal. he had access to the family. and he is a wonderful writer -- >> host: did this scandal take him by surprise as wellsome. >> guest: absolutely, yeah. and it's about paterno's life, about this man who was the winningest college football coach in history. and a man who valued excellence much more than success, about

what happens when all of this erupted. and i would put it right up there with "when pride still mattered" by maraniss or richard kramer's book on joe dimaggio. it's a book about much more than sports. that's one. the only other one i will tell you about because i don't want to turn this into a commercial is a novel by herman woek. he just turned 97 years old, and when i was in great school, i actually wrote my master's thesis on the idea of entertainment as literature. and literature's entertainment. and woek was the writing i wrote about to ex'em exemplify that. his novels in particular. and he's written a new novel that is very much sort of a latter day update of marjorie morningstar, and it's called "the law giver." and it's about a bunch of people

trying to make a movie about the life of moses. and there is a latter day marjorie morningstar at the center of this, and i think it's just amazing that this man whose first novel was published by simon & schuster about 61 years ago has returned to simon and zeuser and is still going strong at 94. >> host: morgan? >> guest: well, i'm very excited about -- [inaudible] new book. a year ago he started to report on the killing of osama bin laden. mark is the author of "black hawk down," probably the preeminent chronicler of the special forces and military actions in the u.s. today. and, you know, he -- jerry bruckheimer called mark and said do you want to do this story, and mark called me and said, well, jerry's going to make a movie, yeah, we probably should do the book. mark wasn't sure. he said i've got to be sure i've

got stuff that nobody else did. it's called "the finish," the killing of osama bin laden. and i've been waiting 11 years for a novel from lawrence norfolk. and he delivered a book to me set in 17th century england about a young boy who is a prodigy of the kitchen and becomes a cook, the most renowned cook of his time. falls in love with the daughter of the lord of the manor, the english civil war intervenes and, anyway, it's for the audience who love -- [inaudible] and each chapter opens with a recipe. and i have commissioned 13 original illustrations, and i'm going to make the most beautiful book, and i'm so excited about it. it's beautiful inside as well as a physical object. so that's coming in the fall too. >> host: two more questions. what's it like now to have amazon as a publishing

competitor? i mean, obviously, all the publishers like amazon to sell their books, but -- >> guest: well, i mean, you know, people ask me that, report reporters ask me that question, and i'm not particularly concerned by it. in fact, i've had editors who are 900 times my size for 20 years. now there's one that's a thousand times my size, what's the difference? [laughter] i'm going to have to find ways to maneuver and strategies that work for us. and the other thing is i think it could educate amazon about the challengers that publishers have and the value a publisher adds to the process. and, you know, i mean, somebody said, well, respect you afraid you'll lose offers to them? it doesn't bother me that much. i think it'll offer writers an interesting alternative. >> guest: i couldn't have said that any better. i think it's largely a media obsession. and i understand why. they're new, different, big, and they've got a lot of money. >> host: so does simon & schuster. >> guest: well, i'm glad you

think so. [laughter] but, you know, they are ultimately just another publisher, and there are enough good writers to go around. >> host: i was just kidding. jonathan karp, publisher of simon & schuster. what's on your summer reading list? >> guest: on my summer reading list? >> host: yep. what are you looking forward to reading? >> guest: well, i'm looking forward to reading robert caro's latest volume of the lyndon johnson series. that's going to take some time. and really i spend most of my time reading simon and schuster books unfortunately. >> guest: i've got a galley of richard ford's canada. that's the next book that i'm going to read. and i'm trying to get a galley of juneau diaz's new book. >> host: gentlemen, morgan, jonathan, thank you very much for being on booktv. >> host: well, here at bookexpo america, the book publishing industry's annual trade show in new york city. another university press is represented, and that's the

university of chicago press. carrie adams is the publicity figure for that press. we want to talk about some of the books coming out in the fall of 2012. if we could start with bea tradition how farman's book. what is that? >> the author of health care for some, and the only right we have is the right to be seen in an emergency room which is a rell thetively new law passed in 1986. as a result, the rest of our health care system comes down to a series of rationings, and this is what mrs. hoffman discusses, how our health care has been rationed and the result and sort of expensive, bulky, random system that we have today. hoffman gives a full history of how this rationing came to be put in place and talks about how it's experienced at a human level. >> host: does she look for policy solutions to this

rationing? >> guest: it's more of a history. i wouldn't call it polemical, but i think anything that's going to give a history of health care is going to steer a little bit left or at least talk about ways that we can make it a system that makes more sense to more people. >> host: does the university of chicago press have a point of view when you choose books? >> guest: we try not to. our university press, all of our books are vetted both by readers and by a board of university professors. so i think the board itself is often divided on different policy decisions. but we are looking for strong scholarship more than anything. >> host: well, another book that's coming out this fall is michael landis draw bear's book. >> guest: yes. that is called "the sympathetic state." and unlike -- we often think that welfare has its origins in the new deal and progressive era politics of that time, but actually as draw bear shows, welfare goes back to 1790 which was a law that allowed for

victims of natural disaster. and it was actually this law that they were drawing on when they drew up the welfare system during the great depression. and dawber says this reframes the idea of the great depression as a disaster that fell on citizens through no fault of their own. and he traces out this history to show how this controversy continues to play out as we kind of debate whether we want to help those in need while we have the sort of skeptical position that perhaps they're responsible for their own plight. >> host: how many books a year does the university of chicago press put out? >> guest: we have over 250 titles in this new catalog, but we also distribute for 50, 55 other publishers, so i'd say there's about 750 titles altogether. >> host: you act as a distributer for such as whom? >> guest: we have many presses in the u.k. like the british library, the bosnian library, reaction books. but our reach extends even

further. we have a great literature and translation publisher out of calcutta, india, so it's a really diverse mix. >> host: and finally, michael gordon's new book. who is michael gordon? >> guest: michael gordon is writing about pseudoscience in america. in 1950 he published a fantastic bestseller that created quite a frenzy called "worlds in collision" which said that the baby call disasters -- biblical disasters that you've read about were the results of a comet that settled into orbit as venus. it was immediately a bestseller, but it was panned and vehemently attacked by scientists who said it was absolute bunk. so gordon is looking at why science reacted to it. and usually science has let pseudoscience pass on without heed. so he looks at the reception of the book and kind of talks about

how this reflects on our current debate of how we determine what is legitimate scientific inquiry, something that's often discussed in conversations about climate change and evolution. >> host: we've been talking with carrie adams here at bookexpo america, university of chicago press. some of their new titles coming out in the fall of 2012. >> host: well, one of the things we like to do at booktv is preview some upcoming books. and joining us now here at the book publishing industry's annual convention in new york city is author robert sullivan whose new book coming out in september of 2012 is "my american revolution." mr. sullivan, what did you do to create this book? what was your thought behind it? >> guest: the thought, i would argue i don't have many thoughts. but what i did was, well, i

spent my whole life growing up in this vicinity. i spent some time living in oregon where my wife's from, went to school in other towns, but pretty much growing up in this landscape and hearing kind of vague notions about maybe george washington did this here or that there. and, you know, and i remember running a marathon at one point in new york city and saying, wow, now i get where the hills are and the valleys are. and at some point i kind of decided to put those ideas together like a landscape and the kind of raw history of new york. can they be put together? and so i went to look for the be revolution in and new jersey and in the tristate area. kind of the revolution in the 11:00 news' weather maps of the new york area. >> host: and what'd you find? >> guest: well, i mean, you know, growing up you'll hear

about boston, the tea party, the way things happened in boston, lexington and concord, all good stuff, you hear a lot about virginia and virginians. and so you kind of tend to think that, you know, new york didn't have much to do with anything. but i totally discovered that it all happened here. it all happened here. and, you know, i kind of want to start a battle with my friends in boston and say, yeah, yeah, i know the siege of boston and all that, but washington and the continental army pretty much, you know, kind of parried and jabbed in and around new york city which the british controlled for pretty much the whole war. so then it becomes, wow, well, why did they camp here and not here, and, you know, what did these hills matter? and that's just the most fun question for me in the whole world, what did these hills matter, what did the hills have

to say? so really looking for history. >> host: so one of the things you did here, there's a picture of you in a row boat, was you escaped from manhattan. what was that about? >> guest: i did. actually, i escaped from brooklyn. well, i attempted to escape from brooklyn. well, everything with me is a long story, so i apolo use. apologize. is but, basically, i try today write about the weather and how it affected all the various battles, and also people talk about providence and god came in. but then i went back to look at the evacuation of the troops from brooklyn to manhattan after the very first be battle of the revolution which was in brooklyn, new york, washington and the generals were pretty sure it was going to be in -- but it was in brooklyn. after the very first battle they get romped really, really bad. and so washington and the guys say we've got to get out of here. they run from the middle of

brooklyn sort of down to the water, and they're sitting there waiting. and overnight under the cover of fog and other things they grab every boat they can, and they evacuate manhattan -- >> host: across the east river. >> guest: yeah. kind of the opposite of what reality is doing in the city now. people are moving to brooklyn from manhattan. maybe we can stop that. but anyway, they evacuate with pretty much every book they can find. i have a lot to say about how that went and so forth. but ultimately, when i go back to this place and look at what the tides would have been doing and what they do today and how those things are essentially is the same, i mean, it's like the greek philosopher, the river is the same because it's always changing. i mean, the river itself is an example of how we perceive history and circles and eddies. but anyway, when i went down to go do it, i found out it's pretty much illegal, that i would not be allowed without several state permits and probably a lot of --

[inaudible conversations] >> guest: yeah. it would be illegal for me to get in the boat and evacuate with my army to brooklyn. that would not be allowed. which is, you know, which is problematic. but i figured out a way to do it. i actually found some community boaters, and community boating, community boathouses are the big thing. people are kind of taking back the water. there's a revolution happening on the water. and i found a guy, i went to a boathouse, and the boathouse said, oh, the guy who helps out, he used to reenact the evacuation of brooklyn every year. the coast guard would give him a hard time, but he did it anyway. so we went out and be reenacted that guy's reenactment. so i never had to wear a wig is really what i'm saying which is probably a bad thing. i should have worn a wig. >> host: so what did you learn in your evacuation from brooklyn to manhattan?

>> guest: in that evacuation -- >> host: that you could tie in to the american revolution, tie in to george washington. >> guest: well, i guess i'd say, first of all, the idea of revolution. at the time of the american revolution, there was this thought that we would revert back to our british citizenship. we have the rights again that we once had as british citizens who lived their calling. so there's that kind of old idea of revolving back to something. but for me, there's the additional idea of the calendar and the almanac, revolutionary almanac kept, you know, tides and, you know, when the lunar cycles and all these things, and people would keep them and read them and actually right after the war the first mention they think of george washington as the father of our country was in an almanac that's printed in

pennsylvania. so washington is made the father, so to speak, on this very landscape. this new york/new jersey/connecticut landscape is the founding landscape in many ways. the first place to be named for washington is in upper manhattan. and it happens shortly after the war begins, which to me was astounding. i thought it took a long time. anyway, the thing i really discovered was with some concentration and with no wig necessary, you can look into the seasons, and even though it sounds crazy, and kind of see the path, you can go down and look at the tides and consider these things and how the then relates to now. so that when you go up and look at george washington's lookout point be, for instance, and i did a thing with my daughter, we signaled, we recreated a signal point that washington would have

used during the war. when you look at those signal points, you see finish. [inaudible] but the plaque isn't there. you'll be able to find the history books, remnants of missile sites that were put at the same point during the cold war and at that very same site that -- [inaudible] then a missile site for the cold war, probably other things in between that i don't know about. at the very same site, if i go there today to a lot of those points around the city that circle the si, i'll find plaques or memorials to 9/11. because then the people went to those same sites to see manhattan just as washington might have to see what the british were doing. they were natural viewpoints, and we're naturally inclined to go to these view points. with summertime here, a lot of

visitor to new york city. >> host: where's one place you would recommend viewers are interested? >> guest: i mean, the simplest thing is you take the ferry to the statue of liberty and to look for the spot in the landscape, it's kind of over, over staten island, there's a hill, the highest point on the seaboard between maine and somewhere down in georgia is toad hill sound. if you look at that hill and you block out all the modern advances, you're seeing pretty much what, say, general nathaniel greene saw. you see the same exact view. >> host: final question i wanted is to ask you about the -- [inaudible] that were here in new york. what's that story? >> guest: that's, for me, a fascinating story. more people died on the prison

ships than died in the war, in battles in the war. so after the battle of brooklyn, the british picked up everybody they captured, put them on old ships in between the brooklyn bridge and -- actually, between the manhattan bridge and the -- >> host: and the east river? >> guest: and the east river. and they kept putting more people on. and there were not just continental soldiers, but there were slaves who ran and didn't turn for the british, there were spanish sailors, dutch sailors, there were all kinds of people on these ships. and people in, frankly, poor communities came to feed them from the shore. they would, you know, get food to the boat somehow. they would also collect the bones as the british just strewed the bodies over. washington continually writes letters, you know, you can't treat our prisoners like this,

and he was consistent that we treat our prisoners fairly -- in letters that i've read, anyway. anyway, so these bones sat there all through the war, and for a long time after walt whitman set up a memorial. the bones are all there, but they had to work and work for years to collect the bones to make what people feel is a proper memorial. it becomes a flash point. these people would say, oh, you build a statue to george washington, the one that's now on wall street, with subscriptions from wealthy people, but you don't rescue the bones of his soldiers. so it becomes a kind of, you know, flash point between classes. >> host: robert sullivan here at bookexpo america. the book publishing's annual industry convention. >> you're watching an interview

from booktv's recent trip to new york city from book educate poe america -- expo america. for more information visit bookexpo america.com. >> are here to hear about the story of the trenton six. my book is about six african-american men who werean round r rounded up, tried, convicted and sentenced to be electrocuted for the murder of a white man. man. this was all done more or less within the law by police and prosecutors who followed proper procedure and who knew that the men were innocent. i'm going to very briefly tell you some facts of the case

because i want to spend most of my time reading little bits from the book. on january 27th, 1948, a white man, william horner, who was a secondhand store dealer in downtown trenton, new jersey, was murdered. seen leaving this crime were two light-skinned african-americans. six men were ultimately arrested. they had no way to fight back, no knowledge of their rights. the sister of one was determined to to find justice for the men. she found the civil rights congress when no one else would help. the civil rights congress was an arm of the communist party usa.

the men were -- cases were appealed to the new jersey supreme court. after the appeal the convictions were all overturned. they were tried again. this time four men were acquitted, two men were found guilty, and this time not sentenced to be electrocuted. they were sentenced to death at hard labor. these two appealed, their convictions were overturned again. this time one died in if -- in prison before he could be tried again, and he was the brother of the lady who got them help. the last one made a deal for time served. people think that this could not

happen now, but i would refer you to the cases of the norfolk four that happened this century in virginia. so, unfortunately, not much has changed. the time period and the place are very important to this story. 1948 do 19353 -- 1948 to 1953. trenton, new jersey, was very southern. they had jim crow laws firmly in place. world war ii had ended only a few years previously. this is important because the main employer, robeling, who was famous for building the cables used in the brooklyn bridge, they were not only not hiring, they were actually laying off people. at the same time, blacks throughout the south were coming to the north, and a fair number

of them landed in trenton. this meant that previously the black areas were filled up x so they had -- and so they had to move and spread out into previously all-white areas. also this is a time when the beginning of the cold war, communism and the mccarthy era. senator joseph mccarthy used the beginning of the cold war to his political advantage. this is at the time when the countries of eastern europe were being devoured by the soviet union. this created a really hyper atmosphere of fear. the police after this murder were under tremendous pressure to do something, and this is not good because they do. they created a thompson

submachine gun-toting squad of 15 policemen. the head of public safety said, well, well-meaning people may accuse us of acting like a gestapo, but if we can bring in the horner killers, i'm willing to take all their criticism. and this was just after world war ii, so being accused of being like a gestapo was a significant criticism. this squad created a reign of terror in the black neighborhoods. the police just went out and brought in people for questioning and saw how they did. how they responded under questioning. when they brought in the people, they would put them in a fairly small room surrounded by at least four large, beefy

policemen with a gun and a billy club. the men who wound up being sentenced to death here were all rather small. thomas english was the first one the police got to break. the men ultimately, um, gave confessions which were then used in the trials. english's own father had him brought in for using his car without permission. the father, george, was in prison, in jail for attempting to rape his own stepdaughter. english had had rheumatic fever while he was in service in the navy in world war ii. this caused significant heart

damage. he had leaky valves, and he was so afraid of anything when he got under stress, he then confessed to this killing. mckinley forest was next. he was english's brother-in-law, and he came to the police station to find out why english did not return. they just put him in a cell, mckinley walked in, they didn't say anything to him. when they found out who he was, they just put him in a cell. the next is ralph cooper who had no family or friends, had just moved to trenton. horse wilson was illiterate, james thorpe was next, he had a serious speech impediment, so did mckinley forest. so when the police were haranguing them, you did this killing, you did this killing, two of the men actually had speech defects, could not easily

talk back. james thorpe had also had his right arm amputated above his elbow two weeks before the killing. 40 one mentioned -- no one mentioned a one-armed murderer. so this very quick summary of the facts doesn't give you any idea of what the people actually experienced going through this. so i'm going to read several little bits from the book. the first one is from james mccens si who was brought in -- mckenzie who was brought in last. he was the only one who could read, write and had no physical problems. the reason he was brought in is because he lived in the same house as english and mckinley, and so he was easy to find. before the first trial, there's the jury sitting in the jury box, there's the six black defendants.

the jury was all white, all middle class. so before the trial john mckenzie said, i knew we were cooked when i seen that jury. i hope he didn't mean that literally. they were sentenced to be electrocuted, after all. the next is september 19th, 1948. on this day the trenton six waited to die. no lawyer, judge, prosecutor, warden or jail guard ever told the men that their sentences had been stayed when their appeal was filed. they had their heads shaved and their pants slit in preparation for their electrocushion. electrocution. this was incredibly cruel because the jail guards who did

this knew there would be no execution that day. when they finally got out of the death house and were interviewed by journalists, they -- about their time in the death house -- cooper spoke up first. he said, oh, it wasn't so bad except for that september 19, it wasn't so bad. thorpe added, yeah, that september 19 was rough. questioned about this reply, cooper explained that's the day we thought we was going to be taken to the electrocution chair. we waited all day and all night expecting to be electrocuted. cooper felt the pressure so acutely, he did not utter a word for the next two months. english asked the reporters why couldn't they tell us?

my cell was right next to the execution room. i saw them take three men in there. i saw them carry three men right past me. it was rough. the next thing i want to read was written, the letter written by betsy mitchell, the for of english, who was -- the sister of english who was termed to find them help -- determined to find them help. this was when they were in the death house. she wrote a letter to eleanor roosevelt. my name is betsy mitchell. my brother, my brother-in-law and four other men are sentenced to the electric chair and are in the death house. maybe you heard or read of the horner murder case or better known as the case of the trenton

six in trenton, new jersey. these men are innocent, and their records show that. since the time my brother was arrested, i have been fighting for him and the other men. i beg thed the police to -- i begged the police to let me see my brother, and they would not let me. then i went to several organizations, newspapers, veterans' administration and even to the fbi. i also wrote to governor driscoll, supreme court and many rich people. they refused me in a nice way. then i lost faith in the united states of america. i had always believed before that the people found justice here when they couldn't anywhere else in the world. then i learned about the civil rights congress. i begged them to help me. first, they start to restore my faith in the american people,

then they gave me courage to keep fighting to win. i remember you when i was a girl, how interested you were in negro people. please help us now. my people can't stand these police brutalities much longer. i remain humble, betsy mitchell. p.s., please answer. eleanor roosevelt wrote to several people she knew in new jersey including the attorney general. they all assured her that the new jersey supreme court would, in the appeal, would treat this case in a very fair manner and see that justice was done. so eleanor roosevelt wrote that back to betsy mitchell. the next little bit is after the

convictions were overturned, all six, by the new jersey supreme court. it is at a mass meeting in trenton. the speaker is paul robison. i think some of you may know who he was, a fantastic human being, a huge black guy. he could sing, he could act, he was, um, an athlete, he was very active in civil rights in his time. paul robison said, the wealth of the usa was built on the backs of my people, yet we are made to crawl. we are loyal to the america of lincoln and the abolitionists. but not to those who degrade my people. 1% of the american population

gets 59% of the national income. i am a radical, and i am going to stay one until my people get free to walk the earth. the last person i'm going to introduce you to briefly is raymond alexander. he was a black lawyer who was recruited for the second trial. he was recruited by the naacp by think good marshall -- thurgood marshall who, of course, later was on the u.s. supreme court. raymond alexander, for the first time after a very long trial, three months -- i forgot to mention both trials took three months, 15,000 pages of trial testimony that i had to go through, and my eyes still

haven't quite recovered from this experience. but raymond alexander in 1950 was hired by the u.s. state department to travel western europe to go to army bases and see that the african-american soldiers were being treated fairly. he was doing this in paris when he saw front-page newspaper headline about the trenton six on trial again, pictures, everything. every country he traveled in had further stories about the trenton six. um, he was amazed that this story from trenton would be all over europe. the civil rights congress besides getting lawyers for the men's appeal also had an amazing

political machine. they, um, literally made the trenton six case known worldwide, and in 1950 this was a very hard thing to do. raymond alexander did not like the publicity they created because they said that blacks were treated unfairly in the united states. so raymond alexander said to the jury in his summation, folks, this is one great opportunity that you have to set at rest the malicious propaganda which has spread not through new jersey, not through america, but the whole world that america does not treat its minorities right, fair and equal. after the trial results were made known, four men were

acquitted. these included the two that raymond alexander represented. he got one final opportunity to address the court, and he did so. he said, i want to express to your honor and to the members of this jury on behalf of the 15 million people of colored america whom i represent -- he did not say the two men he represented or even the six, he said of 15 million he was representing in this trial -- he thanked them for their deliberations in which they gave very minute study in the case. here he broke down sobbing. he was able to recover himself to finish his remarks.

it is a remarkable tribute to the state of new jersey that you members of the jury who have so faithfully served, upheld the great traditions of american justice and jus the disin -- and justice in new jersey. my book is all about the great tradition of american justice as it intersected the lives of six african-americans in the 1950s. .. [applause] >> visit booktv.org to watch any of the programs you see here