Monbiot goes state-side
A few months ago we reported an exclusive story here on DeSmogBlog about the troubles renowned UK columnist and author, George Monbiot, was having with finding a publisher to launch his book Heat in the United States.
Monbiot told us at the time that U.S. editors had all said a version of the same thing: "Americans aren’t ready for it."
Well it looks like South End Press, a publisher with a penchant for provocative literature, has picked up the gauntlet. Monbiot's book is now available in the US.
No slight to South End Press, I am glad they saw the value in Monbiot's book, but it is a shame that none of the larger publishing houses found Heat worthy of the US readership. Along with a large publishing house comes the large distribution channels that ensure a broad readership.
In the UK, Heat was published by the massive publishing house Penguin Books and in Canada it was picked up by Random House, another large publisher. In both countries the book was very well-received and sold very well, in very large part because it is very well-researched and well-written book. But it definitely doesn't hurt to have a powerhouse publisher backing you up.
This is not a book that should be ignored, especially in the United States which is dire need of a real kick in the proverbial butt when it comes to action on climate change. Let's hope South End pulls out the big guns on this book and ensures that it gets the recognition and attention that it deserves.
Monbat has been silenced for too long
I too can attest to having been told by literally dozens and dozens and dozens of publishers that the public “is not ready” for my own provocative poetry manuscript, so I identify with other supressed authors such George Moonbiat.
What great news that George Monbat has signed with an progressive publisher like South End Press! I have been intending to send them my own manuscript, but I haven’t gotten that far down the list yet. South End Press has an impressive list of provocative authors such as Noam Chomsky, and a man renown for his touching homage to the victims of 9/11, Professor Ward “little Eichmanns” Churchill.
Another provocative book published by South End Press, which caught my eye as a social justice activist, is entitled:
How Nonviolence Protects the State
Its description is very provocative —
“Beyond questioning the effectiveness of nonviolent resistance How Nonviolence Protects the State argues that an insistence on only nonviolent tactics reinforces state power. In chapters such as “Nonviolence is Racist” and “Nonviolence is Patriarchal” Peter Gelderloos passionately calls for activist to look beyond easy answers and to mount a real challenge to power. Not a call to arms, but a call to realize that armed resistance cannot be dismissed out-of-hand.”
And as Kevin Grandia says, unlike AmeriKKKa, Monbat’s book has been enthusiastically received in Canada by readers hungry for The Truth. On Amazon.ca, it currently stands at #93. Although, for some reason a book called “Everyday Pasta” is ranked at #37. Apparently, Amazon.ca customers are a lot more hungry for noodles, the bourgeois fools.
Can you say...
ad hominem?
yawn
Or Satire?
I can't stand Chomsky and I
I can't stand Chomsky and I think Ward Churchill is vile, but I am pleased that South End Press has decided to publish the book. It will certainly raise their credibility and it will bring out a message that is most definitely needed to be heard by the American people.