Le Livre de Poche (literally "The Pocket Book") is the name of a collection of publications which first appeared on 9 February 1953 under the leadership of and published by the , a subsidiary of

Hachette Hachette may refer to: * Hachette (surname) * Hachette (publisher), a French publisher, the imprint of Lagardère Publishing ** Hachette Book Group, the American subsidiary ** Hachette Distribution Services, the distribution arm See also * Hachett ...

. In terms of its influence on the mainstream book market, it shares a similar popularity in France as publishers like Penguin and Signet do in English-speaking territories.

History

Admittedly, books of a similar format, fitting in a pocket, already existed. Since 1905, Editions Jules Tallandier marketed themselves under the name ''Livre de poche'', popular novels at low cost. But the successful reception of ''Le Livre de Poche'' was due to the combination of the new idea of ''consumerism'' with the era and the popular demand for a cheap book, presented in covers recalling cinema posters, but containing quality writing. Henri Filipacchi supposedly had the idea after seeing an American soldier tearing up a book in order to fit it into the pockets of his uniform. Filipacchi succeeded in convincing his editor friends

Albin Michel Albin may refer to: Places * Albin, Wyoming, US * Albin Township, Brown County, Minnesota, US * Albin, Virginia, US People * Albin (given name), origin of the name and people with the first name "Albin" * Albin (surname) ;Mononyms * Albin of ...

, Calmann-Lévy, Grasset and Gallimard to join his project and become the "founding fathers" of Le Livre de Poche. Thus '' Kœnigsmark'', by Pierre Benoit, was the first title released, in 1953. Every fortnight a new title is released. It soon became a ''fait de société''. From 8 million copies in 1957-1958, sales climbed to 28 million in 1969. This success inspired competitors:

J'ai lu Groupe Flammarion () is a French publishing group, comprising many units, including its namesake, founded in 1876 by Ernest Flammarion, as well as units in distribution, sales, printing and bookshops (La Hune and Flammarion Center). Flammarion b ...

created by Flammarion in 1958, Presses Pocket created by the

Presses de la Cité Presses de la Cité is a French publishing company founded in 1943 by Sven Nielsen, the son and grandson of booksellers, who came to Paris in 1924. Before becoming a publisher, Nielsen specialised in exporting French books. In 1988, with its me ...

and Folio created by Gallimard in 1972 after its withdrawal from the Librairie Générale Française. But, with nearly a billion volumes distributed since its creation and more than 18 million copies sold in 2002, it remains the premier widely distributed French paperback collection.

Some facts

The capital of La Librairie générale française, a limited company, is owned 80% by Hachette-Livre and, up to 20%, by les

Éditions Albin Michel Éditions Albin Michel is a French publisher. In January 2022, the new director is Anna Pavlowitch, the daughter of Paul Pavlowitch, Romain Gary and Jean Seberg's nephew. History It was founded in 1900 by Albin Michel. They published, first, Ro ...

. * 3,500 titles in its catalogue as of 31.12.2002 * 14,000 titles published since 1953 * 1 billion volumes distributed since its inception * 360 new titles a year * 1,000 reprinted titles a year * more than 18 million copies sold in 2002

References

External links

*http://livredepoche.com is the imprint's official website. (in French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Livre de poche French books 1953 books Hachette (publisher) books Editorial collections