Reaktion Books is an independent book

publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

based in

Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England. It was founded in 1985 in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland, and moved to London in 1987. Reaktion originally focused on the fields of art, architecture, and design. In recent years it has broadened to include more areas and also publishes series of books.

Details

Reaktion originally focused on the fields of art, architecture, and design – its first book was ''

Ian Hamilton Finlay Ian Hamilton Finlay, CBE (28 October 1925 – 27 March 2006) was a Scottish poet, writer, artist and gardener. Life Finlay was born in Nassau, Bahamas, to James Hamilton Finlay and his wife, Annie Pettigrew, both of Scots descent. He was ...

: A Visual Primer'' by Yves Abrioux. In recent years Reaktion's list has broadened substantially, and now also encompasses animal studies, Asian art and culture, biography, cultural studies, current events, fashion, film, food history, geography, general history, music, philosophy, photography, politics, and sports history. Reaktion now produces around 70 new titles each year and has about 500 titles in print. Among the monographs released by Reaktion are studies of the Ottoman architect

Sinan Sinan (Arabic: سنان ''sinān'') is a name found in Arabic and Pre-Islamic Arabic inscriptions, Early Arabic, meaning ''spearhead''. The name may also be related to the Ancient Greek name Sinon. It was used as a male given name. Etymology Th ...

and the artists Delaroche,

Holbein Hans Holbein may refer to: * Hans Holbein the Elder Hans Holbein the Elder ( , ; german: Hans Holbein der Ältere; – 1524) was a German painter. Life Holbein was born in free imperial city of Augsburg (Germany), and died in Issenheim, Alsa ...

Tintoretto Tintoretto ( , , ; born Jacopo Robusti; late September or early October 1518Bernari and de Vecchi 1970, p. 83.31 May 1594) was an Italian painter identified with the Venetian school. His contemporaries both admired and criticized the speed with ...

, Bellini, Malcolm Morley, Leon Golub, and

Caspar David Friedrich Caspar David Friedrich (5 September 1774 – 7 May 1840) was a 19th-century German Romantic landscape painter, generally considered the most important German artist of his generation. He is best known for his mid-period allegorical landscape ...

, the last of which was awarded the 1992 Mitchell Prize for the History of Art. Reaktion also publishes many series of books, including ''Animal'', short natural and cultural histories of individual animals; ''Edible'', global histories of a particular food, drink, or ingredient; ''Critical Lives'', concise critical biographies of important cultural figures; and ''Earth'', studies of the historical and cultural significance of natural phenomena. Recent books of note from Reaktion include ''Twenty Minutes in Manhattan'' by Michael Sorkin, ''Travels in the History of Architecture'' by Robert Harbison, ''Werner Herzog - Ecstatic Truth and Other Useless Conquests'' by Kristoffer Hegnsvad, ''Boxing: A Cultural History'' by Kasia Boddy, and ''Owl'' by

Desmond Morris Desmond John Morris FLS ''hon. caus.'' (born 24 January 1928) is an English zoologist, ethologist and surrealist painter, as well as a popular author in human sociobiology. He is known for his 1967 book '' The Naked Ape'', and for his televis ...

Notes and references

External links

Reaktion Books website
{{Authority control Book publishing companies of the United Kingdom Companies based in the London Borough of Islington British companies established in 1985 Publishing companies established in 1985