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Maillart’s Forbidden Journey From a Long Lost Pre-War Publisher

Posted: January 21st, 2011 | 4 Comments »

It’s been years since I read Ella Maillart’s Forbidden Journey and then when in Paris earlier this year I wandered into the marvellous Shakespeare and Company on the Left Bank.  Pressed for time I didn’t know where to start but knew I only had about ten minutes before a meeting to ‘browse’ and also needed a book for the Eurostar back to London. I wandered to the back of the shop and there, sitting alone on a shelf, was a battered but rather beautiful copy of Forbidden Journey for the very reasonable sum of euros9.

Maillart 1926

It is of course a great companion to Peter Fleming’s One’s Company, his account of the same journey. Maillart got annoyed with Fleming for rushing along so at to get back to Scotland for the start of the Grouse Season, Fleming (who had no sense of smell or taste) ate anything and Maillart photographed everything. Indeed they neither fell into bed together nor shot each other but remarkably remained great friends.

The edition I found is from 1938 from a publisher I’d never heard of before – The Albatross Library. But Albatross Library books do pop up now and again. They were a 1930s series which included about 100 works of literature, plus the Albatross Crime Club. Some have suggested the Penguin imprint, Allen Lane, nicked the biord logo from Albatross who did it first. The interesting thing is that Albatross was an English language publisher based in Leipzig, Paris and Bologna. They printed a lot of great authors, mostly English but obviously others such as Maillart (Swiss). I think I might start a collection of Albatross’s to go with my Penguins!


4 Comments on “Maillart’s Forbidden Journey From a Long Lost Pre-War Publisher”

  1. 1 Lawrence Wheeler said at 12:14 am on January 22nd, 2011:

    Thanks for this, Paul–always interesting to see a crisply designed Mardersteig cover. As I’m sure you know, Lewis Blackwell in his study of 20th-century typography states outright that Edward Young (and Allen Lane) lifted the “bird concept” from Mardersteig’s work, although other sources cite Young’s own recollection of how hideous it was to go to the London Zoo and sketch the stinking birds (and thereby rescue Young from outright highjacking….)

    Best,

    Lawrence

  2. 2 Paul French said at 12:24 am on January 22nd, 2011:

    Lawrence,

    If you think someone who’s an author signed to Penguin is going to accuse Allen Lane of copyright infringement you’re very much mistaken!!!!!!!

  3. 3 Lawrence Wheeler said at 5:08 am on January 23rd, 2011:

    Never, never, never!

    ‘Twas that Blackwell person….

    And I should thank you once more–I only knew of Edward Young as a designer–had no idea whatsoever of his military career.

    Best as ever,

    Lawrence

  4. 4 Tim said at 7:21 pm on January 24th, 2011:

    Nice. But upon closer examination of the front cover you may want to be careful where you travel with that particular book…


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