July 30, 1935

On July 30, 1935, the first penguin books were published. Being that penguins were first discovered by Europeans around 1488, the fact that it took until 1935 to write books about them is astonishing. What? Excuse me? Penguin is the name of the book publisher? That’s stupid. Why even mention it then? Because Penguin ushered in the paperback book revolution and made it so that the average person could buy a quality book at a fraction of the hardback cost. So, who were some of the first authors? Ernest Hemingway, Agatha Christie, and E.H. Young were three of the first ten authors. Fine! Next I imagine you’re going to tell me that Tor books aren’t name after the mighty Norse god Tor, the one that wields a mighty hammer and is pulled across the heavens by his angry goats in his little red wagon! It isn’t. And the god’s name is Thor, not Tor. You’re fired.

About Joel Byers

Born in North Georgia and educated at some very fine public institutions. Real education started after graduating from college and then getting married and raising two boys. Has the ability to see the funny and absurd in most things and will always remark on it, even if it means getting the stink-eye from his victims.
This entry was posted in 20th Century, Historical Facts and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *