Friday Reads: Fiction in Translation
February 1, 2018
Award news! For the first time in more than two decades, the National Book Foundation is adding a new category to its literary prizes: the National Book Award for Translated Literature. Announced this week, the new prize will recognize a work of either fiction or nonfiction translated into English and published in the U.S.
There’s a Book for That! is brought to you by Penguin Random House’s Sales department. Please follow our Tumblr by clicking here—and share this link with your accounts: theresabookforthat.tumblr.com. Thank you! Did you see something on the news or read about something on your commute? Perhaps you noticed something trending on Twitter? Did you think: “There’s a book for that!”? Then please, send it our way at theresabookforthat@penguinrandomhouse.com
Friday Reads: Jacqueline Woodson
January 4, 2018
For the first Friday Reads of the New Year, we are focusing on young readers and hope for the future. Penguin Random House author Jacqueline Woodson was just named National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature by The Children’s Book Council, Every Child a Reader, and the Library of Congress. During her two-year term, Woodson, a four-time Newbery Award winner and former Young People’s Poet Laureate, will travel the country promoting her platform, READING = HOPE x CHANGE (What’s Your Equation?). You can read more about Jacqueline Woodson’s appointment here and we invite you to immerse yourself in her award-winning books:
Riverhead’s Masha Gessen 2017 NBA Nonfiction Winner; Our NBA Winners, 2013-17
November 16, 2017
Masha Gessen, author of THE FUTURE IS HISTORY, was honored Wednesday night at a ceremony in Manhattan with the National Book Award for Nonfiction, continuing a cherished, time-honored connection for Penguin Random House authors with one of America’s most coveted literary prizes.
THE FUTURE IS HISTORY: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia by Masha Gessen(Riverhead Books Hardcover & E-book; Penguin Audio)
In THE FUTURE IS HISTORY, visionary journalist and bestselling biographer of Vladimir Putin Masha Gessen reveals how, in the space of a generation, Russia surrendered to a more virulent and invincible new strain of autocracy. Hailed for her “fearless indictment of the most powerful man in Russia” (The Wall Street Journal), Gessen is unparalleled in her understanding of the events and forces that have wracked her native country in recent times. She follows the lives of four people born at what promised to be the dawn of democracy. Gessen charts their paths against the machinations of the regime that would crush them all, and against the war it waged on understanding itself, which ensured the unobstructed reemergence of the old Soviet order in the form of today’s terrifying and seemingly unstoppable mafia state. “A remarkable portrait of an ever-shifting era…Gessen weaves her characters’ stories into a seamless, poignant whole. Her analysis of Putin’s malevolent administration is just as effective…a harrowing, compassionate and important book,” San Francisco Chronicle.
In accepting her Award, a beaming Masha Gessen spoke without prepared notes—because she “didn’t think this was going to happen.” She told the audience of 750 attendees that her final work ended up a much longer and different book on Russia than originally planned, thanking her publisher, Riverhead, “for sticking with me,” and especially her long time editor Becky Saletan.
In congratulating Masha Gessen, Becky Saletan, and the Riverhead/Penguin Publishing Group and Penguin Random House Audio publishing teams, we also celebrate their counterparts behind our six NBA semi-finalists and five finalists for this year’s National Book Awards.
The complete list of Penguin Random House National Book Award winners, 2013-2017:
- Fiction: 2016: THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD by Colson Whitehead (Doubleday) 2015: FORTUNE SMILES: Stories by Adam Johnson (Random House) 2014: REDEPLOYMENT by Phil Klay (Penguin Press) 2013: THE GOOD LORD BIRD by James McBride (Riverhead)
- Nonfiction: 2017: THE FUTURE IS HISTORY: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia by Masha Gessen(Riverhead Books) 2015: BETWEEN THE WORLD AND ME by Ta-Nehisi Coates (Spiegel & Grau)
- Poetry: 2015: VOYAGE OF THE SABLE VENUS by Robin Coste Lewis (Knopf)
- Young People’s Literature: 2014: BROWN GIRL DREAMING by Jacqueline Woodson (Nancy Paulsen Books)
Popular Company News
A Newly Discovered and Never-Before-Seen Manuscript by Dr. Seuss To Be Published by Random House Children’s Books
October 28, 2025
An original manuscript and cover sketch by Ted Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss, was discovered in the archives of UC San Diego’s Geisel Library, and will be…
Our 38 New York Times Book Review “100 Notable Books of 2025”
November 27, 2025
The annual New York Times Book Review “100 Notable Books” list has arrived, honoring the year’s most compelling and influential works across fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.…
Random House Children’s Books to Acquire Cherry Lake Publishing Group
November 11, 2025
Sleeping Bear Press, Tilbury House, and Other Cherry Lake Imprints to Join Random House Children’s Books, Maintaining Distinct Identities and Leadership. Random House Children’s Books (RHCB),…
David Szalay Wins the 2025 Booker Prize for FLESH
November 12, 2025
We’re thrilled to share that David Szalay has won the 2025 Booker Prize, one of the leading literary awards in the English-speaking world, for his novel…
Spotlighting Our Titles on Amazon’s Best Books of 2025
November 14, 2025
Amazon recently released its Best Books of 2025 list, compiled by the Amazon Editors after spending thousands of hours reading and evaluating an impressive range of…
Our 76th National Book Awards Winner: Omar El Akkad’s ONE DAY, EVERYONE WILL HAVE ALWAYS BEEN AGAINST THIS
November 20, 2025
On the night of November 19, 2025, the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization, announced the winners of the 76th National Book Awards, which celebrate the best literature…
Penguin Random House and United for Libraries Announce 2026 Grant Program for Rural and Small Libraries
October 21, 2025
Penguin Random House and United for Libraries have announced a 2026 grant program designed to uplift rural and small libraries across the country. This initiative will…
Five PRH Titles Recognized in New York Times Book Review’s “10 Best Books of 2025”
December 3, 2025
On Tuesday, December 2, the New York Times Book Review released their esteemed "10 Best Books of 2025", following last week's announcement of their "100 Notable…
Higher Ground to Launch “IMO: The Look” Podcast Series With Michelle Obama on November 5, Featuring Live Events Alongside Book Release
October 16, 2025
Higher Ground, the media company founded by President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, today announced a special six-part limited companion series to its hit podcast IMO…
