About Us

About Alma Classics

In Spring 2007 Elisabetta Minervini and Alessandro Gallenzi, founders of Alma Books, launched Oneworld Classics in partnership with the directors of Oneworld Publications, Juliet Mabey and Novin Doostdar. In September 2007, Oneworld Classics acquired the legendary Calder Publications list (founded 1949), with its vast array of Nobel-Prize winners and controversial authors such as Artaud, Trocchi and Miller. Subsequently The Calder Collection was launched, providing a greater range of hitherto unavailable or obscure world classics.

In 2010 Oneworld Classics launched a new imprint, Overture Publishing, a series of beautifully produced opera and classical-music guides which are unique in the English language.

In Spring 2012 Alma Books acquired Oneworld Classics with an aim of breathing new life into this much loved list, revamping and rebranding titles as Alma Classics. Alma Classics will continue the Oneworld Classics mission, publishing not only the greatest recognized masterpieces of all time, from every literature and genre, but trying to redefine and enrich the classics canon by promoting unjustly neglected works of enduring significance.

Alma Classics Critical Apparatus

Most of the titles in the series are provided with an extensive critical apparatus and extra reading material. With an emphasis on the production, editorial and typographical values of a book, Alma Classics aspires to revitalize the whole experience of reading the classics.

The text is based on the most authoritative edition (or collated from the most authoritative editions or manuscripts) and edited using a fresh, intelligent editorial approach. New translations have been commissioned for most foreign-language works.

For most titles, this includes:

Illustrations

A section of up to eight pictures or photos, enabling the reader to “see” as well as read the text and its context. Illustrations range from photographs of the author, the manuscript, autographed documents and first-edition title pages, all the way to portraits of important characters present in the text or in the author’s life, and to photographs of the author’s residence.

Author’s Life

A section concentrating on the personal and historical circumstances that shaped the author’s work, enriched by excerpts from letters, documents and other literary texts. This will help the reader place the authors and their works in a social and historical context.

Author’s Literary Career – Works

A list of the works written by the author in chronological order, accompanied by a brief description and commentary. A longer description will be dedicated to the major works and to the title in question.

The Inspiration for

For many titles, a selective list of imitations, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, films, parodies and TV adaptations inspired by the work.

Note on the Text and on the Translation

A short textual note and, if relevant, a brief translation note and translator’s biography.

Bibliography

A short list of bibliographical resources (including websites) that the reader can refer to for further reading.

Essential Notes

These will provide important contextual and hypertextual information relevant to the work.

Appendices

Further reading material, such as relevant letters, documents or works by the author or by another author. The combination of this material with the text makes the Alma Classics editions even more unique.

Pages from the Original

For most translations, a section consisting of three or four pages of the original text for the translated works.


Copyright © 2013 Alma Classics.