Faber & Faber by Toby Faber

Such a great lecture on Wednesday (8 January 2020) from Toby Faber on “Faber and Faber:  90 years of excellence”.  As the grandson of the founder of this venerable publishing house, Toby knows all the hidden stories of the growth and survival of Faber and Faber through the 20th C into the 21st C.   We heard the story about the second Mr Faber (you had to be there), the pivotal role of T.S Eliot (who started life as banker),and some of the other important authors including, W.H. Auden, William Golding, Philip Larkin, Sylvia Plath and Seamus Heaney.  We heard about the book that nearly got away (Lord of the flies) and the one that did (Life of Pi).

And we also heard about the role of book cover design and typography, both as integral part of the book itself, and as part of selling the book.  It was clear from the examples shown how book cover design changed from the early part of the 20th C through the 19060s and 70s to present day designs.

Toby Faber was Managing Director of Faber and Faber, so when asked what as a good book cover, his answer was “One that sells the book”.

So next time you are in a bookshop, look at the book covers, and remember they are nearly all miniature works of art and design.