Barack Obama

Penguin Random House Adds 300,000 to the One Million Books Donated to First Book in Obama Family Name

Today, Penguin Random House joins with Former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama to announce that the company will donate an additional 300,000 children’s books to First Book, building upon its previously announced donation of one million of its children’s books to First Book in the Obama family’s name. Plans for the one million donation were originally announced in 2017 when Penguin Random House acquired world publication rights to publish books by President and Mrs. Obama.

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In celebration of the completion of the one-million-book donation in the Obama family name, Penguin Random House announces that it will donate up to 300,000 additional children’s books to First Book as part of the Hope Love Give campaign to raise one million dollars to help give one million books to kids who need them most. For every three dollars donated to First Book from now through December 31, Penguin Random House will give two new books to First Book, up to 300,000 books. Last year, during her highly successful book tour, Mrs. Obama made a surprise visit to the Para Los Niños Tina and Rick Caruso Early Education Center, an organization located in the Skid Row area of Los Angeles that receives program support from Child360, to spend time and read with a group of four-year-old children. Child360 was one of the first recipients to receive books from the company’s one-million-book donation to First Book. Markus Dohle, CEO, Penguin Random House, said: “We are honored to donate one million children’s books in the Obama family’s name to First Book. When children have greater access to our books and stories, we, together with President and Mrs. Obama, are helping to shape a literate, educated, and democratic society that will become the next generation of readers and leaders.” The Penguin Random House donations to First Book in the Obama family name were made in support of the continued publishing partnership between the company and the authors as a reflection of their shared commitment to social responsibility and to promoting literacy and education. First Book, a longstanding Penguin Random House non-profit partner, is dedicated to promoting equal access to education by providing new books, learning materials, and other essentials to children in need in the United States and Canada.

Crown is N.A. Publisher of Two New Obama Books

Crown-Obama-logoMaya Mavjee, President and Publisher of Penguin Random House’s Crown Publishing Group, today announced that Crown will publish in the U.S. and Canada two separate books to be written by former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, respectively. Penguin Random House, of which

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Crown is a part, acquired world publication rights to both books last week from the authors’ representatives, Robert Barnett and Deneen Howell of Williams & Connolly. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Details about the books, including their respective titles and publication dates, will be announced in the future. Crown previously published President Obama’s multimillion-copy bestsellers Dreams from My Father and The Audacity of Hope, as well as Mrs. Obama’s 2012 illustrated book about the White House kitchen garden, American Grown, which was a #1 New York Times bestseller. Obama booksRachel Klayman, Vice President, Executive Editor, will edit President Obama’s book for Crown. In 2004, Ms. Klayman spearheaded the paperback reissue of President Obama’s first book, Dreams from My Father, and served as his editor for The Audacity of Hope (2006). The two books have sold nearly 7 million copies to date in the U.S., and were also worldwide bestsellers. Molly Stern, Senior Vice President and Publisher of the Crown, Hogarth, Crown Archetype, Broadway Books, and Three Rivers Press imprints, will edit Mrs. Obama’s book. The publication strategy for both books will be led by Crown senior executives David Drake and Tina Constable, who have previously partnered on numerous other noteworthy publications for the Group and who have worked on the previous books by the authors. Said Ms. Mavjee, “Crown is honored to continue its publishing relationship with President Obama and Mrs. Obama, both of whom are transformative figures in today’s world. They will write deeply inspiring and illuminating books that draw upon their rich personal experience and dedicated public service. Each publication will be a historic event.” In support of the mission of The Obama Foundation and Penguin Random House’s own commitment to social responsibility, the company will donate one million books in the Obama family’s name to First Book, a longstanding Penguin Random House nonprofit partner and the Washington, DC–based partner for the 2016 White House digital education initiative, Open eBooks. First Book is dedicated to promoting equal access to education by providing new books, learning materials, and other essentials to children in need in the United States and Canada. Consistent with their past practice, the Obamas also plan to donate a significant portion of their author proceeds to charity, including the Obama Foundation.

Penguin Random House to Publish Forthcoming Books by Former U.S. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama

news-company-default-thumb-300x150(February 28, 2017)— Penguin Random House is pleased to announce that it will publish forthcoming books by former President of the United States Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. Penguin Random House CEO Markus Dohle announced today that the company has acquired world publication rights for two books, to be written by

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President and Mrs. Obama respectively. Terms of the agreement, in which the authors were represented by Robert Barnett and Deneen Howell of Williams & Connolly, were not disclosed. In support of the mission of The Obama Foundation and Penguin Random House's own commitment to social responsibility, the company will donate one million books in the Obama family's name to First Book, a longstanding Penguin Random House non-profit partner and the Washington, DC-based partner for the 2016 White House digital education initiative, Open eBooks. First Book is dedicated to promoting equal access to education by providing new books, learning materials, and other essentials to children in need in the United States and Canada. Consistent with their past practice, the Obamas also plan to donate a significant portion of their author proceeds to charity, including the Obama Foundation. Markus Dohle said: "We are absolutely thrilled to continue our publishing partnership with President and Mrs. Obama. With their words and their leadership, they changed the world, and every day, with the books we publish at Penguin Random House, we strive to do the same. Now, we are very much looking forward to working together with President and Mrs. Obama to make each of their books global publishing events of unprecedented scope and significance."