University of Reading - Penguin paradigm

The role Penguin paperbacks played in revolutionising publishing is the subject of research to mark 75 years since the first books in the format were released. Nicola Wilson, a postdoctoral research assistant at the University of Reading who is researching the history of the novel in Britain, is looking at how Penguin "paved the way for the democratisation of books". The first 10 paperbacks were produced as holiday reading in August 1935 and were a "brilliant case of branding, production and marketing" that changed people's perceptions of the format, Dr Wilson said.