''American Book Review'' is a literary journal operating out of the

University of Houston-Victoria A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

. Their mission statement is to “specialize in reviews of frequently neglected published works of fiction, poetry, and literary and cultural criticism from small, regional, university, ethnic, avant-garde, and women's presses.” In addition to publishing the ''American Book Review'' six times a year, ''American Book Review'' and the University of Houston-Victoria organize the UHV/ABR Reading Series. Hosting over a hundred speakers since the ''American Book Reviews conception, the reading series “features nationally recognized writers on extended visits to the Victoria campus.” Guests read from their most recent works, participate in discussion with UHV faculty and staff, and offer signed editions of their work for purchasing.

History

The ''American Book Review'' was founded in 1977 by

Ronald Sukenick Ronald Sukenick (July 14, 1932 – July 22, 2004) was an American writer and literary theorist. Life Sukenick was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, where his father was a dentist. He graduated from Midwood High School and Cornell University ...

. According to author and essayist

Raymond Federman Raymond Federman (May 15, 1928 – October 6, 2009) was a French–American novelist and academic, known also for poetry, essays, translations, and criticism. He held positions at the University at Buffalo from 1973 to 1999, when he was app ...

, in his reading with ''American Book Review'' in 2007, Sukenick founded the ''American Book Review'' because ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' had stopped reviewing books by “that group labeled experimental writers,” and Sukenick wanted to start a “journal where we can review books that everyone is ignoring.” Federman and Sukenick both funded the beginning of ''American Book Review'', with the “American” in the title suggesting that the journal would review books from all across American and not primarily focus on books from New York. Originally operating out of

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...

at Boulder in 1987, ''ABR'' later moved to

Illinois State University Illinois State University (ISU) is a public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of th ...

in 1995. In ''The Employment of English'', Michael Bérubé writes, "When Ron Sukenick folded the University of Colorado (Boulder) branch of FC2, Normal also picked up publication of ''American Book Review'', one of the liveliest general-purpose reader’s guides for everything." Rochelle Ratner served as the publication's longtime executive editor. The publication then moved to the University of Houston-Victoria in 2006. In 2009, ABR, through an agreement with

Johns Hopkins University Press The Johns Hopkins University Press (also referred to as JHU Press or JHUP) is the publishing division of Johns Hopkins University. It was founded in 1878 and is the oldest continuously running university press in the United States. The press publi ...

, allowed online editions of its issues to be available through the database ProjectMuse. The current ''American Book Review'' staff includes Jeffrey R. Di Leo as publisher and editor, Jeffrey A. Sartain as managing editor, and JJ Hernandez as assistant editor.

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links

Official Website
Bimonthly magazines published in the United States Book review magazines Literary magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1977 Magazines published in Colorado Magazines published in Illinois Magazines published in Texas