In February 2018, Penguin launched their new 'Penguin Women Writers' series. Featuring four books chosen by the acclaimed authors Penelope Lively and Kamila Shamsie, the series seeks to shine the spotlight on women writers whose work has been hitherto neglected in the UK. To find out more, we spoke to the editor who commissioned the series, Isabel Wall

Wall, Isabel

LSE Research Online

Feature:	Introducing	the	‘Penguin	Women	Writers’series:	A	Q&A	with	assistant	editor	Isabel	WallIn	February	2018,	Penguin	launched	their	new	‘Penguin	Women	Writers’	series.	Featuring	four	books	chosen	bythe	acclaimed	authors	Penelope	Lively	and	Kamila	Shamsie,	the	series	seeks	to	shine	the	spotlight	on	womenwriters	whose	work	has	been	hitherto	neglected	in	the	UK.	To	find	out	more,	we	spoke	to	the	editor	whocommissioned	the	series,	Isabel	Wall.This	interview	is	published	as	part	of	a	March	2018	endeavour,	‘A	Month	of	Our	Own:	Amplifying	Women’sVoices	on	LSE	Review	of	Books’.	If	you	would	like	to	contribute	to	the	project	in	this	month	or	beyond,	pleasecontact	us	at	Lsereviewofbooks@lse.ac.uk.	Image	Credit:	Penguin	Women	Writers	novels	(copyright	Penguin/Martha	Rich)Q:	What	was	the	impetus	behind	the	‘Penguin	Women	Writers’	series	and	how	did	you	approach	PenelopeLively	and	Kamila	Shamsie	to	choose	the	four	books?February	2018	marked	the	centenary	of	(some)	women	getting	the	vote	in	Britain,	and	I	wanted	to	celebrate	theoccasion	with	a	publishing	event	that	would	champion	books	by	women	writers	who	had	been	unfairly	neglected.	Idecided	to	invite	two	of	our	most	acclaimed	contemporary	writers,	Penelope	Lively	and	Kamila	Shamsie,	to	chooseand	introduce	two	books	each.	We	have	published	Penelope	at	Penguin	General	for	many	years,	so	I	knew	she	wassomeone	who	regularly	supported	women’s	writing	and	would	bring	extensive	knowledge	and	expertise	to	the	series.I	was	very	inspired	by	Kamila’s	piece	in	the	Guardian	on	making	2018	a	year	of	only	publishing	women,	so	sheseemed	an	obvious	choice	as	a	passionate	advocate	for	women’s	contributions	to	literature.	Both	are	authors	Igreatly	admire	in	their	own	right,	and	whose	endorsement	I	knew	would	make	a	world	of	difference	in	attracting	newreaders	to	these	forgotten	gems.Q:	Could	you	introduce	the	books	that	make	up	the	series?	Were	there	any	set	parameters	when	it	came	toPenelope	and	Kamila’s	choices,	and	did	you	encounter	any	practical	issues	in	bringing	these	particularworks	(back)	into	print	in	the	UK?LSE Review of Books: Feature: Introducing the ‘Penguin Women Writers’ series: A Q&A with assistant editor Isabel Wall Page 1 of 4		Date originally posted: 2018-03-14Permalink: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2018/03/14/feature-introducing-the-penguin-women-writers-series-a-qa-with-assistant-editor-isabel-wall/Blog homepage: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/The	Penguin	Women	Writers	series	brings	together	abrilliantly	diverse	collection	of	books.	Penelopechampions	the	work	of	Mary	McCarthy,	the	fiercelyintelligent	and	acerbic	American	writer	and	activist,whose	novel	Birds	of	America	explores	political	issues	asrelevant	today	as	when	it	was	first	written	in	1971,	fromthe	threat	of	war	to	environmental	destruction.	It’s	also	awitty	account	of	the	strange	and	surprising	nature	ofgrowing	up,	as	her	teenage	protagonist	discovers	whenhe	leaves	America	for	a	thrilling	new	life	inParis.	Penelope’s	second	choice	is	a	little	known	novelfor	adults	by	the	beloved	children’s	writer	E.	Nesbit:	TheLark,	first	published	in	1922,	is	an	utterly	joyful	bookabout	two	young	girls	determined	to	earn	a	living	of	theirown	after	their	male	guardian	gambles	away	theirinheritance.Kamila’s	choices	introduce	readers	to	writers	who	arerenowned	in	other	parts	of	the	world	but	barely	knownhere	in	the	UK:	Ismat	Chughtai	and	Sara	Suleri.	Chughtaiwas	India’s	most	controversial	feminist	writer	who	wasprosecuted	(unsuccessfully)	on	obscenity	charges	fordaring	to	write	about	lesbian	love	in	1940s	India.	This	isjust	one	of	the	pieces	contained	in	Lifting	the	Veil,	awickedly	funny	collection	of	short	stories	andautobiographical	fragments	that	explore	female	sexualityin	a	patriarchal	world.	Suleri’s	Meatless	Days,	firstpublished	in	1989,	is	a	searing	memoir	of	life	in	Pakistan;the	sudden	death	of	the	author’s	mother	and	sister	inspirea	profound	and	heartbreaking	meditation	on	love	andgrief.I	deliberately	gave	Penelope	and	Kamila	a	very	wideremit	–	to	choose	two	books	of	any	time,	place	or	genre.The	only	criteria	were	that	they	had	to	be	either	out	of	print	or	out	of	copyright	in	the	UK,	for	practical	reasons,	andhappily	I	was	able	to	acquire	rights	from	the	various	agents	and	estates	easily	once	they	had	both	made	theirchoices.Q:	The	cover	art	by	Martha	Rich	is	very	striking.	How	did	you	come	to	approach	her	to	design	the	covers	forthe	series?I	knew	that	I	wanted	all	four	covers	to	be	designed	by	a	single	female	designer,	in	keeping	with	my	aim	of	celebratingwomen’s	creativity.	And	I	wanted	a	very	bold,	striking	and	colourful	series	look	–	something	that	demanded	attention.Our	art	director	John	Hamilton	suggested	a	variety	of	possible	female	designers	and	showed	me	their	portfolios	–	Iwas	immediately	struck	by	Martha’s	playful	and	exuberant	style.	Happily	Martha	agreed	to	take	on	the	commissionand	hand-painted	every	aspect	of	all	four	covers.LSE Review of Books: Feature: Introducing the ‘Penguin Women Writers’ series: A Q&A with assistant editor Isabel Wall Page 2 of 4		Date originally posted: 2018-03-14Permalink: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2018/03/14/feature-introducing-the-penguin-women-writers-series-a-qa-with-assistant-editor-isabel-wall/Blog homepage: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/Image	Credit:	Penguin	Women	Writers	novels	(copyright	Penguin/Martha	Rich)	Q:	As	you	mention,	the	four	books	were	originally	published	in	different	eras,	countries	and	languages.	Howimportant	was	it	to	have	this	diversity,	and	would	you	like	the	series	to	contribute	to	the	rediscovery	of	‘lost’or	underappreciated	works	by	other	women	writers	around	the	world?I’m	delighted	that	the	series	has	such	variety	–	it’s	a	testament	to	the	extraordinary	range	of	women’s	writing	thatexists,	and	it	challenges	our	preconceived	ideas	of,	say,	what	a	Muslim	woman	in	1940s	India	might	be	writing	about,or	how	an	American	woman	in	the	1970s	might	portray	France	or	Italy.		I’m	particularly	pleased	to	have	been	able	toinclude	a	work	in	translation	in	this	series,	as	it’s	increasingly	necessary	to	read	works	by	authors	writing	fromdifferent	cultures	and	perspectives.	And	I	very	much	hope	that	the	series	will	inspire	others	–	both	publishers	andreaders	–	to	seek	out	other	books	which	may	have	been	unfairly	neglected	for	reasons	of	prejudice	or	bias.Q:	While	the	most	recent	of	the	books	was	written	in	1989,	Kamila	and	Penelope	have	both	spoken	of	theircontinued	resonance	in	the	contemporary	moment.	Was	it	important	that	these	works	all	feel	relevant	today,rather	than	being	seen	as	‘period	pieces’?	I	didn’t	set	out	to	find	books	that	were	necessarily	relevant	to	today’s	society,	but	rather	ones	which	modern	readerswould	still	find	enjoyable	and	entertaining.	The	Lark,	for	instance,	could	be	called	a	period	piece	as	it	very	muchfocuses	on	concerns	of	its	day	–	from	the	question	of	women	earning	their	own	living	to	class	snobbery	–	yet	it	is	abook	that	readers	love	for	its	old-fashioned	wit	and	light-hearted	charm.	Birds	of	America,	though,	is	remarkable	in	itsportrayal	of	a	teenager	troubled	by	political	issues	which	remain	at	the	forefront	of	our	debates	today.	And	all	fourauthors	shared	a	radical	and	progressive	outlook	which	feels	incredibly	relevant	to	the	world	we	live	in	now.Q:	You	mentioned	Kamila’s	article	in	the	Guardian	and	the	centenary	of	some	women	being	given	the	rightto	vote	in	the	UK	as	inspirations.	Do	you	see	the	series	as	contributing	to	debates	surrounding	gender	(andother)	imbalances	in	publishing?Absolutely	–	I	hope	not	only	to	bring	attention	to	the	four	forgotten	gems	included	in	the	Penguin	Women	Writersseries,	but	also	to	contribute	to	a	conversation	around	broader	issues	of	equal	representation	for	all:	from	what	isincluded	in	the	canon,	to	the	importance	of	championing	diverse	voices.Isabel	Wall	is	an	assistant	editor	at	Viking,	an	imprint	of	Penguin	Random	House	UK.	She	graduated	from	theUniversity	of	Bristol	with	a	first	class	degree	in	French	and	Italian	in	2014.	She	lives	in	London.Note:	This	interview	gives	the	views	of	the	author,	and	not	the	position	of	the	LSE	Review	of	Books	blog,	or	of	theLondon	School	of	Economics.	Images	are	provided	courtesy	of	Penguin	and	should	not	be	reproduced	without	thepermission	of	the	copyright	holder.	LSE Review of Books: Feature: Introducing the ‘Penguin Women Writers’ series: A Q&A with assistant editor Isabel Wall Page 3 of 4		Date originally posted: 2018-03-14Permalink: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2018/03/14/feature-introducing-the-penguin-women-writers-series-a-qa-with-assistant-editor-isabel-wall/Blog homepage: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/	LSE Review of Books: Feature: Introducing the ‘Penguin Women Writers’ series: A Q&A with assistant editor Isabel Wall Page 4 of 4		Date originally posted: 2018-03-14Permalink: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2018/03/14/feature-introducing-the-penguin-women-writers-series-a-qa-with-assistant-editor-isabel-wall/Blog homepage: http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/

Feature: introducing the 'Penguin women writers' series: a Q&A with assistant editor Isabel Wall

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Feature: introducing the 'Penguin women writers' series: a Q&A with assistant editor Isabel Wall

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