Penguin Classics to launch 'Penguin Archive' series with publication of 90 short books

Penguin Classics is set to launch a "Penguin Archive" series with the publication of 90 short books to celebrate 90 years of the publisher. The books will be published on 17th April 2025, and the list has been curated by 16 Penguin Classics editors and covers authors from Poe, Austen and Wells in the 1930s to the 21st century, when Mary Gaitskill, Tove Ditlevsen and Wang Xiaobo joined the list.

The list covers a range of languages and genres, including Icelandic sagas, ghost stories, satirical essays, ancient philosophy, science fiction and much more. Penguin revealed there will also be a "major" campaign behind the series including advertising, POS and brand partnerships as well as publicity and events.

Jess Harrison, publishing director for Penguin Classics, said: "Allen Lane revolutionised publishing when he launched Penguin Books in 1935, bringing accessible and popular paperbacks to the masses for just sixpence. Ever since, the humble Penguin has stood as a marker of literary quality, directing readers to the best books ever written. We’ve gone digging in our amazingly rich archives and have uncovered all kinds of treasures for this new series, which celebrates the writers who have become Penguins over the years and pays tribute to the friendly, playful spirit of Lane’s original enterprise."

Jim Stoddart, art director for Penguin Classics, said: "The Penguin Archive series is Penguin Classics’ love letter to Penguin. The design process for the Penguin Archive series has been an extensive fever dream of books covers, old and new. Using typography as the medium to evoke different Penguin eras, we’ve reprised the creativity of many legendary designers involved with creating Penguin’s visual legacy, from the first tentative modernist covers and hand-drawn logos, to the highest evocation of type and book design. It’s been a privilege standing on the shoulders of these design giants to rekindle much-loved and often iconic book covers from the last 90 years.

"In the spirit of early printing processes, we’re using just one colour stamped into naked cover board. Title, author and design do the rest."