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'Nobody knows what is going on in Hebrew literature,' Miller says
Appelfeld is the only Israeli author on the spring front-list
Photo: Yossi Rot

Toby Press boosts local literature

Jerusalem-based publishing company promotes Israeli authors, but not for obvious reasons

The Toby Press is based in Jerusalem and publishes numerous Israeli and Jewish authors, but founder Matthew Miller says he's running a business, and the promotion of Jewish and Israeli authors is not the company’s reason for being.

 

Although Toby has published Jewish and Israeli authors, such as Haim Sabato and Naomi Ragen, the company does not make it a point to promote them exclusively, and the overwhelming majority of the books have nothing to do with Judaism, Miller says.

 

"We even published a book by an author from Arkansas," he says. "There is not one Jew in his book, and it's wonderful; it's angst-free."

 

Miller says Toby Press promotes Israeli writers simply because the company has access to many Israeli authors that other publishers don't have access to.

 

"The only Israeli writer I have on our spring front-list is Aharon Appelfeld, but he'd be on the front-list of any publisher," he says.

 

Bringing Hebrew literature to America

 

One project Toby is currently focusing on is the translation and publication of work by early Hebrew writers. According to Miller, there are some 500 universities and colleges in the U.S. that offer courses in classic Hebrew literature, but translated Hebrew literature is hard to come by.

 

"If you are teaching Hebrew literature, there is very little text available of the early Hebrew writers, such as Yosef Haim Brenner and Micha Josef Berdyczewski," he says. "Is that ideological? Yes, but I'm in it for the money."

 

Toby Press also promotes contemporary Israeli writers, and has recently begun publishing a revival of the periodical “Modern Hebrew Literature,” which is subtitled Lives in Disguise. The volume is a compilation of excerpts from current Hebrew fiction, poetry, and essays.

 

The periodical, published in conjunction with the Institute for the translation of Hebrew Literature, is meant to introduce local Israeli writers to American audiences.

 

"Nobody knows what is going on in Hebrew literature, and this periodical is a sort of window in," he says. "I mean, who knows Haim Beer outside of Israel?"

 

Miller, who founded the company in 1999 after making aliyah from England, says he wanted to do something that would operate from Israel and extend to the U.S., where he was born and raised.

 

"Our offices are here, but the actual inventory is done in the States," he says. "Perhaps in the past, this would not have been possible, but today, with FedEx and the Internet, it's doable."

 

Whereas the operational aspect does not pose a problem, Toby Press is not profitable yet.

 

"The functioning side is easy, but the selling is always hard," Miller says. "We aren't breaking even yet, but I have hope for the future; or else I wouldn't be doing it."

 

Miller says 99 percent of the company’s sales are in the U.S.

 

"We don't sell anything in Israel," he says.

 


פרסום ראשון: 05.04.05, 01:33
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