A Chat With James Magni

Author of Magni Modernism

James Magni is an award-winning architect and designer based in Hollywood, California. His work has been featured in magazines such as Architectural Digest, the New York Times, and Robb Report. His furnishing line is available in major cities across the United States.

The Hidden Talents of ABRAMS: Revealed

So who really was a Majorette?

Merle Browne, executive assistant to CEO and President Michael Jacobs, finally divulges the final answers to our ‘Hidden Talents’ post on Monday.

It’s been a busy week here on the sixth floor, and though lots of people stopped me in the hall begging for clues to my list of extraordinary employees and their talents, not too many people ventured actual guesses.

The Hidden Talents of ABRAMS

Uncovering the multi-layered personalities on the sixth floor

Merle Browne, executive assistant to President and CEO Michael Jacobs, decided to take a stab at uncovering some of the varied hidden talents of ABRAMS employees. Even if you don’t them, it’s still an impressive list.

There are 112 full time employees here at ABRAMS, 32 men and 80 women, who range in age from 21 to 72…and there are talented people in our midst.

I mean, obviously, there are talented people working here on the sixth floor. We publish beautiful, fascinating, funny and informative books, how could we not be talented?

But we have secret skills too. Hidden strengths that don’t get showcased at our desks each day, some of which would amaze a casual observer.

Corn, corn, corn! The great (corn-filled) state of Iowa

Visiting the country's midsection with the only Art of the State book still in print

Last week I headed back to my hometown of Sioux City, Iowa for a few days of good food, fun, and relaxation. Before leaving, I leafed through an older Abrams book, Iowa, part of the Art of the State series from the late 1990s. While only 96 pages, it packs a wealth of information about the Hawkeye State including information on art (Grant Wood), public works (the bridges of Madison County), the Iowa State Fair, and of course, corn.

The rebirth of the good old beer garden

Our Drinkology: Beer author talks about this beloved German summer staple

A recent New York Times article hailed the return of the summer beer garden and what a return it has been. With the rebirth of the beer garden in New York City and around the country, we thought it was appropriate to ask James Waller, author of the Drinkology series of books, published by STC, to talk beer lore. His latest, Drinkology Beer: A Book About the Brew will be released this October. A revised and updated edition of Drinkology: The Art and Science of the Cocktail came out in 2010.

Navigating the Children’s Book Council (with Harry Potter in tow)

Taking the exciting leap into a storied publishing industry institution

Sales Assistant Matthew Dinda gives us an inside peek at the great work he and other ABRAMS staffers do for the Children’s Book Council and the Council’s Early Career Committee. Jason Wells, executive director of children’s marketing and publicity, and Susan Van Metre, publisher for Abrams Books for Young Readers, Amulet Books and Abrams Appleseed, are also involved.

Five burning questions about The Smurfs

We ask the author of our new 'The World of the Smurfs' to break down a particular little blue world

As we near the pinnacle (nay, end) of NYC’s Smurfweek festivities (which celebrate tomorrow’s opening of The Smurfs), I turned to our resident Smurfologist Matt Murray, the author of the just-released The World of Smurfs. The World of Smurfs is an exhaustive compendium of all things smurfy. Much of the content has never before been published in English. There are fascinating sidebars on the Nazi occupation of Belgium, the origin of the word “schtroumpf”/smurf, and the voice behind Jokey, to name a few. Murray takes fans through the creation of the Smurfs, from the early days of their creator, Peyo, as a struggling cartoon artist, to the global phenomenon they became, and finally to the recent Smurf resurgence. For this piece, I polled my Abrams colleagues to find out what they’d always wondered about the Smurfs. Below are Murray’s answers; memorize these and you might be able to pass yourself off as a Smurfologist!

The changing world of the Columbia Publishing Course

Two ABRAMS employees shed light on why the publishing world institution matters

The Columbia Publishing Course is an industry institution, in which college graduates from far and wide come to New York City in hopes of pursuing their dreams of working in book publishing. Hot on the heels of a fascinating New York Times article last week, Jason Wells, the executive director of marketing & publicity for Abrams Books for Young Readers & Amulet Books, and Wesley Royce, assistant editor, reflect on their experiences with the CPC and the value of the six-week program in a constantly evolving publishing world.