Alfred A. Knopf: Quarter Century

This slim volume, published in 1940 by friends of the publisher Alfred A. Knopf, contains tributes from H.L. Mencken, Willa Cather, and others on the occasion of Knopf's 25 years of publishing. The best summary of Knopf's contribution probably comes from fellow publisher B.W. Huebsch, who writes: "A creative publisher ... wakes the public to what it has been missing; he waits for no cue from readers, he gives it." Knopf's achievement in bringing seven Nobelists, including Thomas Mann and Knut Hamsun, to the American public would be enough for any publisher, but he also insisted on making lasting books of quality and superb design. And I cannot recall ever having found a typographical error in a Knopf book from the teens, 20s, or 30s.