Allison & Busby (A & B) is a

publishing house Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...

based in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

established by Clive Allison and

Margaret Busby Margaret Yvonne Busby, , Hon. FRSL (born 1944), also known as Nana Akua Ackon, is a Ghanaian-born publisher, editor, writer and broadcaster, resident in the UK. She was Britain's then youngest publisher as well as the first black female book p ...

in 1967. The company has built up a reputation as a leading

independent publisher A small press is a publisher with annual sales below a certain level or below a certain number of titles published. The terms "indie publisher" and "independent press" and others are sometimes used interchangeably. However, when a distinction ...

Background

Launching as a publishing company in May 1967, A & B in its first two decades published writers including Sam Greenlee,

Michael Moorcock Michael John Moorcock (born 18 December 1939) is an English writer, particularly of science fiction and fantasy, who has published a number of well-received literary novels as well as comic thrillers, graphic novels and non-fiction. He has wo ...

, H. Rap Brown,

Buchi Emecheta Buchi Emecheta (born Florence Onyebuchi Emecheta; 21 July 1944 – 25 January 2017) was a Nigerian writer who was the author of novels, plays, autobiography, and children's books. She first received notable critical attention for her 1974 novel ...

Nuruddin Farah Nuruddin Farah (, ) (born 24 November 1945) is a Somali novelist. His first novel, '' From a Crooked Rib'', was published in 1970 and has been described as "one of the cornerstones of modern East African literature today". Farah has also written ...

, Rosa Guy, Roy Heath,

Aidan Higgins Aidan Higgins (3 March 1927 – 27 December 2015) was an Irish writer. He wrote short stories, travel pieces, radio dramas and novels. Among his published works are '' Langrishe, Go Down'' (1966), '' Balcony of Europe'' (1972) and the biographi ...

, Chester Himes, Adrian Henri, Michael Horovitz, C. L. R. James, George Lamming, Geoffrey Grigson, Jill Murphy, Andrew Salkey,

Ishmael Reed Ishmael Scott Reed (born February 22, 1938) is an American poet, novelist, essayist, songwriter, composer, playwright, editor and publisher known for his Satire, satirical works challenging American political culture. Perhaps his best-known wor ...

, Julius Lester, Alexis Lykiard,

Colin MacInnes Colin MacInnes (20 August 1914 – 22 April 1976) was an English novelist and journalist. Early life MacInnes was born in London, England, son of singer James Campbell McInnes and novelist Angela Mackail, who was the granddaughter of the Pr ...

, Arthur Maimane, Adrian Mitchell, Ralph de Boissière, Gordon Williams, Alan Burns,

John Clute John Frederick Clute (born 12 September 1940) is a Canadian-born author and critic specializing in science fiction and fantasy literature who has lived in both England and the United States since 1969. He has been described as "an integral part ...

James Ellroy Lee Earle "James" Ellroy (born March 4, 1948) is an American crime fiction writer and essayist. Ellroy has become known for a telegrammatic prose style in his most recent work, wherein he frequently omits connecting words and uses only short, ...

, Giles Gordon,

Clive Sinclair Sir Clive Marles Sinclair (30 July 1940 – 16 September 2021) was an English entrepreneur and inventor, best known for being a pioneer in the computing industry and also as the founder of several companies that developed consumer electronics ...

, Jack Trevor Story,

John Edgar Wideman John Edgar Wideman (born June 14, 1941) is an American novelist, short story writer, memoirist, and essayist. He was the first person to win the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction twice. His writing is known for experimental techniques and a focus o ...

Val Wilmer Valerie Sybil Wilmer (born 7 December 1941) is a British photographer and writer specialising in jazz, gospel, blues, and British African-Caribbean music and culture. Her notable books include ''Jazz People'' (1970) and ''As Serious As Your Life ...

, Margaret Thomson Davis,

Dermot Healy Dermot Healy (9 November 1947 – 29 June 2014) was an Irish novelist, playwright, poet and short story writer. A member of Aosdána, Healy was also part of its governing body, the Toscaireacht. Born in Finea, County Westmeath, he live ...

, Richard Stark, B. Traven,

Simon Leys Pierre Ryckmans (28 September 1935 – 11 August 2014), better known by his pen name Simon Leys, was a Belgian-Australian writer, essayist and literary critic, translator, art historian, sinologist, and university professor, who lived in Austral ...

, and others. Among the imprint's original titles are '' The Spook Who Sat by the Door'' (1969), '' Behold the Man'' (1969), '' The Final Programme'' (1969), '' The English Assassin'' (1972), ''

The Worst Witch ''The Worst Witch'' is a series of children's books written and illustrated by English author Jill Murphy. The series are primarily about a girl named Mildred Hubble who attends a witch school and fantasy stories, with eight books published. ...

'' (1974), '' The Bride Price'' (1976), '' The Lives and Times of Jerry Cornelius'' (1976), '' The Condition of Muzak'' (1977), '' Gloriana'' (1978), '' The Chairman's New Clothes: Mao and the Cultural Revolution'' (1979), and '' The True History of the Elephant Man'' (1980). Book series published have included Motive, A&B Poetry, Allison and Busby Writer's Guides, Allison & Busby Twentieth Century Classics, and The Blind Detective Series. The company was acquired by W. H. Allen Ltd in 1987, was subsequently part of

Virgin Publishing Virgin Books is a British book publisher 90% owned by the publishing group Random House, and 10% owned by Virgin Group, the company originally set up by Richard Branson as a record company. History Virgin established its book publishing arm ...

, and has since "evolved and thrived under various independent managers", including Peter Day and David Shelley. A & B is now owned by Spanish publisher Javier Moll's Editorial Prensa Ibérica."New face at Allison & Busby"
Publishing News Digital Archive, Kingston University Information Services, 25 February 2005. The current Publishing Director, appointed in 2005, is Susie Dunlop, and the imprint publishes "an array of books, from crime and thrillers to literary, historical and women's fiction, to fantasy, memoirs, and books on popular culture." At the time of the company's founding, Margaret Busby was the UK's youngest and the first black woman publisher; she left the company in 1987.Shereen Ali
"Sharing Our Voices"
, '' Trinidad Guardian'', 29 April 2015. Clive Allison died on 25 July 2011.

References

External links

Allison & Busby website.

Allison & Busby Books
on Facebook. {{DEFAULTSORT:Allison and Busby 1967 establishments in England Allison and Busby books Book publishing companies based in London British companies established in 1967 Publishing companies based in London Publishing companies established in 1967

Background

References

Further reading

External links