Alma Books

Alma Books is an independent British publishing house based in Richmond, London. It was established in 2005 by Alessandro Gallenzi and Elisabetta Minervini, who had previously founded Hesperus Press. Alma developed a list centered primarily on fiction, combining writing from the English-speaking world with translations from a broad range of languages, including French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish, and Japanese. The company’s catalogue has included contemporary and twentieth-century literary fiction, international writing, and works that occupy a position between commercial readership and more specialist literary publishing. Authors associated with its list include Anthony McCarten, Robert M. Pirsig, William T. Vollmann, Colson Whitehead, Jane Hawking, Tibor Fischer, Tom McCarthy, Carmen Posadas, Yasutaka Tsutsui, Alberto Manguel, Peter Benson, Rosie Alison, and Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa. The range of the list reflects Alma’s interest in both English-language authors and literary works brought to English-speaking readers through translation. A major development came in 2007, when Alma Books entered a joint venture with Oxford-based Oneworld Publications to launch Oneworld Classics. The imprint was intended to publish newly commissioned editions of classic works and subsequently acquired the Calder Publications catalogue. In 2012 Alma Books acquired full ownership of Oneworld Classics and renamed it Alma Classics, making classics and reissued literature a more clearly integrated part of Alma’s publishing identity. Alma also gained recognition for its contribution to international literary exchange. In 2012 it published Aharon Appelfeld’s Blooms of Darkness, which won the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. That year the company received Italy’s Premio Nazionale per la Traduzione for its contribution to promoting Italian culture abroad. According to the cited reference material, the award had not previously been given to a British publisher since its creation in 1989. In 2013 Alma Books was named Independent Publisher of the Year at the Bookseller Industry Awards. The company’s public profile is therefore associated with independent publishing, translated fiction, literary discovery, and the renewal of classic texts. Detailed information about its current ownership, executive structure, financial performance, and present-day publishing programme is not established in the supplied reference material.

Alma Books was founded in 2005 in Richmond, London, by Alessandro Gallenzi and Elisabetta Minervini. The founders had earlier established Hesperus Press, and Alma continued their involvement in literary publishing while developing its own identity. From the outset, the house concentrated mainly on fiction, publishing both authors writing in English and works translated into English from several European and Asian languages. Its publishing programme has drawn on a wide international field. The catalogue has included writers such as Anthony McCarten, Robert M. Pirsig, William T. Vollmann, Colson Whitehead, Jane Hawking, Tibor Fischer, Tom McCarthy, Carmen Posadas, Yasutaka Tsutsui, Alberto Manguel, Peter Benson, Rosie Alison, and Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa. This combination of contemporary literature, international fiction, and translated writing positioned the company as an independent publisher with a strong literary and cross-cultural orientation. In 2007 Alma Books broadened its activities through a joint venture with Oneworld Publications, an Oxford-based publisher. The venture, named Oneworld Classics, was created to issue newly commissioned editions of classic works. It later acquired the Calder Publications catalogue, adding an established body of classic and reprint publishing to the venture’s assets and programme. The relationship changed in 2012, when Alma Books acquired the remaining stake in Oneworld Classics. The imprint was subsequently renamed Alma Classics. This gave Alma full control of a classics line that complemented its modern and translated fiction list and became one of the most visible components of its publishing operation. Alma’s literary and translation work received notable recognition during the same period. In 2012 the house published Blooms of Darkness by Aharon Appelfeld, which won the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. Alma also received the Premio Nazionale per la Traduzione from Italy’s Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities for helping promote Italian culture outside Italy. The supplied reference describes this as the first time since the award’s establishment in 1989 that it had been presented to a British publisher. In 2013 Alma Books was recognized as Independent Publisher of the Year at the Bookseller Industry Awards. The available sources establish Alma Books as a British independent publisher with a catalogue spanning literary fiction, translations, and classic editions. They do not provide reliable detail on later ownership, current leadership beyond the founders, financial results, staff numbers, or the full contemporary catalogue. Those areas require further verification.

1. 2013Independent Publisher of the Year

   Alma Books wins the Independent Publisher of the Year Industry Award at the Bookseller Industry Awards.

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2. 2012Oneworld Classics becomes Alma Classics

   Alma Books acquires full ownership of the joint venture and renames the imprint Alma Classics.

   Source
3. 2012Alma title wins the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize

   Aharon Appelfeld’s Blooms of Darkness, published by Alma, receives the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize.

   Source
4. 2012Alma receives Italy’s national translation award

   The house receives the Premio Nazionale per la Traduzione for its contribution to promoting Italian culture abroad.

   Source
5. 2007Oneworld Classics is launched

   Alma Books and Oneworld Publications create a joint venture to publish newly commissioned editions of classic works.

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6. 2005Alma Books is founded

   Alessandro Gallenzi and Elisabetta Minervini establish Alma Books in Richmond, London.

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An independent literary publisher combining English-language fiction, international translations, and accessible editions of classic literature.

• Alma Books fiction listLiterary and translated fiction2005

  The core Alma Books list focuses primarily on fiction, including works by English-language authors and translations from languages such as French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish, and Japanese. The catalogue has represented both contemporary literary voices and internationally established writers.

• Alma ClassicsClassic literature2012

  Alma Classics is the classics imprint that followed Alma Books’ acquisition and renaming of Oneworld Classics in 2012. It grew out of a programme for newly commissioned editions of classic works and was strengthened by the earlier acquisition of the Calder Publications catalogue.

• 2012Acquire and rename Oneworld ClassicsM&A

  After operating the classics venture with Oneworld Publications, Alma Books moved to consolidate the imprint under its own ownership.

  What changed. Alma Books acquired the full stake in Oneworld Classics and renamed it Alma Classics.

  Aftermath. The transaction established Alma Classics as an Alma-controlled classics publishing line.

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• 2007Create the Oneworld Classics joint ventureM&A

  Alma Books sought to expand beyond its principal fiction list into the publication of classic works.

  What changed. It formed Oneworld Classics with Oneworld Publications.

  Aftermath. The venture later acquired Calder Publications and ultimately became wholly owned by Alma Books.

  Source

• 2013Alma Books wins Independent Publisher of the Year

  Alma Books received the Independent Publisher of the Year Industry Award at the Bookseller Industry Awards.

  Other
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• 2012Alma Books acquires full stake in Oneworld Classics and renames it Alma Classics

  Alma Books took full ownership of the Oneworld Classics venture and changed the imprint’s name to Alma Classics.

  M&A
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• 2012Blooms of Darkness wins the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize

  Alma published Aharon Appelfeld’s Blooms of Darkness, which received the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize.

  Other
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• 2012Alma Books receives Italy’s Premio Nazionale per la Traduzione

  The Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities recognized Alma Books for its contribution to promoting Italian culture abroad.

  Other
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• 2007Alma Books launches Oneworld Classics joint venture

  Alma Books partnered with Oneworld Publications to establish Oneworld Classics, an imprint focused on newly commissioned classics editions.

  M&AProduct launch
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1. Alma Books
2. Alma Books official website