Lorin Hollister Stein (born April 22, 1973) is an American critic, editor, and
translator
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transl ...
. He was the editor in chief of ''
The Paris Review
''The Paris Review'' is a quarterly English-language literary magazine established in Paris in 1953 by Harold L. Humes, Peter Matthiessen, and George Plimpton. In its first five years, ''The Paris Review'' published works by Jack Kerouac, Phil ...
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 d ...
''. but resigned in 2017 following several anonymous accusations of sexual impropriety. Under Stein's editorship, ''The Paris Review'' won two National Magazine Awards—the first in the category of Essays and Criticism (2011), and the second for General Excellence (2013).
Personal life
Lorin Stein was born and raised in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, where he attended the
Sidwell Friends School
Sidwell Friends School is a Quaker school located in Bethesda, Maryland and Washington, D.C., offering pre-kindergarten through high school classes. Founded in 1883 by Thomas W. Sidwell, its motto is ' ( en, Let the light shine out from all), a ...
. He graduated from
Yale College
Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...
in 1995. In 1996 he received an MA from the Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars, where he served as a teaching fellow. Stein currently resides in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
and is married to the writer and editor Sadie Stein, who worked at the ''Paris Review'' from 2011 to 2014. His sister is the literary agent Anna Stein.
Career
After brief tenures as a
contributing editor
A contributing editor is a newspaper, magazine or online job title that varies in its responsibilities. Often, but not always, a contributing editor is a "high-end" freelancer, consultant, or expert who has proven ability and has readership dra ...
at ''
Might
Might may refer to:
* ''might'', one of the English modal verbs
* "Might", a song by Modest Mouse from their 1996 album ''This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About''
* ''Might'' magazine, a magazine founded by American author D ...
'' and ''
Publishers Weekly
''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...
'', Stein was hired by
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG) is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger Williams Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar. FSG is known for publishing literary books, and its authors have won numerous awards, including Pulitzer ...
in 1998 as an editorial assistant. He was eventually promoted to senior editor. In 2008, FSG published his translation of Grégoire Bouillier's memoir ''The Mystery Guest''.
Stein succeeded
Philip Gourevitch
Philip Gourevitch (born 1961), an American author and journalist, is a longtime staff writer for ''The New Yorker'' and a former editor of ''The Paris Review''.
His most recent book is '' The Ballad of Abu Ghraib'' (2008), an account of Iraq's ...
as the fourth editor of ''
The Paris Review
''The Paris Review'' is a quarterly English-language literary magazine established in Paris in 1953 by Harold L. Humes, Peter Matthiessen, and George Plimpton. In its first five years, ''The Paris Review'' published works by Jack Kerouac, Phil ...
'' in April 2010. In 2015 he translated into English the bestselling novel ''
Submission
Deference (also called submission or passivity) is the condition of submitting to the espoused, legitimate influence of one's superior or superiors. Deference implies a yielding or submitting to the judgment of a recognized superior, out of re ...
'' by French author
Michel Houellebecq
Michel Houellebecq (; born Michel Thomas, 26 February 1956 or 1958) is a French author, known for his novels, poems and essays, as well as an occasional actor, filmmaker and singer.
His first book was a biographical essay on the horror writer ...
. He has translated two books by
Édouard Louis
Édouard Louis (born Eddy Bellegueule; 30 October 1992) is a French writer.
Biography
Édouard Louis, born Eddy Bellegueule was born and raised in the town of Hallencourt in northern France, which is the setting of his first novel, the autob ...
In October 2017 the ''Paris Review'' board started an internal investigation which heard complaints from 'at least two female writers' alleging 'negative encounters' with Stein. It was reported in the ''New York Times'' that Stein 'often complimented women on their appearance and suggested they invite attractive friends to aris Reviewparties'. One writer alleged she had a consensual sexual relationship with Stein, including having sex in his office, and thought that their breakup might have affected Stein's judgment of her work. Her agent confirmed she'd been told of the relationship in 2013. Stein strongly denies ever having taken looks or relationship status into consideration when approving stories.
Another woman in publishing claimed that, a decade earlier, Stein had touched her at a work dinner in an inappropriate way, including touching her knee several times, sliding his hand up her skirt and touching her underwear. She said she had to request to move to a different seat to get him to stop. A friend and her boyfriend at the time confirmed she had spoken to them about the encounter when it happened.
On December 6, 2017, Stein resigned. In his letter of resignation, he wrote: "I blurred the personal and the professional in ways that were, I now recognize, disrespectful of my colleagues and our contributors, and that made them feel uncomfortable or demeaned." Stein acknowledged dating and 'expressing interest in women with whom he had professional connections, including interns and writers for the magazine', conduct that he acknowledged was “an abuse of my position.” He wrote that the "way I behaved was hurtful, degrading and infuriating to a degree that I have only begun to understand this past month." However, Stein maintains that all sexual relations and contact was consensual.
He also left his editor-at-large role at
Farrar Straus & Giroux
Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG) is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger Williams Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar. FSG is known for publishing literary books, and its authors have won numerous awards, including Pulitze ...
.
In March 2018, an article in '' Harper's Magazine'' argued that Stein had been a target of false rumors and that his case was an example of "implausibility and rationalization" in the #MeToo movement.
Awards and honors
Books edited by Stein have received the
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors.
The Nat ...
Los Angeles Times Book Prize
Since 1980, the ''Los Angeles Times'' has awarded a set of annual book prizes. The Prizes currently have nine categories: biography, current interest, fiction, first fiction (the Art Seidenbaum Award added in 1991), history, mystery/thriller ...
, the
Believer Book Award Believer Book Award is an American literary award presented yearly by '' The Believer'' magazine to novels and story collections, nonfiction books or essay collections, poetry collections, and, beginning in 2021 (awarding to books published in 2020) ...
, and the
National Book Critics Circle Award
The National Book Critics Circle Awards are a set of annual American literary awards by the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) to promote "the finest books and reviews published in English".Press Release , ''The Paris Review''. His reviews of fiction and poetry and his translations from French have appeared in ''
The New York Review of Books
''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of i ...
The London Review of Books
The ''London Review of Books'' (''LRB'') is a British literary magazine published twice monthly that features articles and essays on fiction and non-fiction subjects, which are usually structured as book reviews.
History
The ''London Review o ...
'', ''
The New Republic
''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hu ...
'', '' n+1'', and the ''Salon Guide to Contemporary Fiction''. His translation of Edouard Levé's ''Autoportrait'' was nominated for the
Best Translated Book Award
The Best Translated Book Award is an American literary award that recognizes the previous year's best original translation into English, one book of poetry and one of fiction. It was inaugurated in 2008 and is conferred by Three Percent, the onlin ...
(2013).
Under Stein's editorship, ''The Paris Review'' has won two National Magazine Awards—the first in the category of Essays and Criticism (
John Jeremiah Sullivan
John Jeremiah Sullivan (born 1974) is an American writer, musician, teacher, and editor. He is a contributing writer for ''The New York Times Magazine'', a contributing editor of '' Harper's Magazine'', and the southern editor of ''The Paris Rev ...
, "Mister Lytle: An Essay", 2011), and the second for General Excellence (2013).
See also
* ''
The Paris Review
''The Paris Review'' is a quarterly English-language literary magazine established in Paris in 1953 by Harold L. Humes, Peter Matthiessen, and George Plimpton. In its first five years, ''The Paris Review'' published works by Jack Kerouac, Phil ...
''
*
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG) is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger Williams Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar. FSG is known for publishing literary books, and its authors have won numerous awards, including Pulitzer ...