Dover Publications facts for kids
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| Parent company | LSC Communications |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1941 |
| Founder | Hayward Cirker and Blanche Cirker |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Headquarters location | Garden City, New York |
| Distribution | Self-distributed (US) F&W Media International (UK) Peribo (Australia) Intersoft (South Africa) |
| Publication types | Books, sheet music |
Dover Publications, also known as Dover Books, is an American company that publishes books. It was started in 1941 by Hayward and Blanche Cirker. Dover is famous for reprinting books that are no longer sold by their original publishers.
Many of these books are in the public domain, meaning anyone can use them freely. The first versions of these books might be rare or historically important. Dover prints them again, making them easy to find and much cheaper for everyone.
Contents
What Dover Publishes
Dover prints many different kinds of books. They bring back classic stories and old sheet music. They also publish images from the 1700s and 1800s that are free to use.
Books for Learning
Dover has a large collection of books about math, science, and engineering. They often print books for special hobbies, like woodworking. Since 2015, they have also started reprinting graphic novels.
How Dover Reprints Books
Most of Dover's reprints are exact copies of the original books. This means they keep the same page numbers and text style. Sometimes, they add a new introduction to the book.
Dover usually gives its paperback books new, colorful covers. They might also change a book's title to make it sound more modern. For example, a book called Woodward's National Architect was renamed A Victorian Housebuilder's Guide.
Dover's History
Hayward and Blanche Cirker began their business by selling leftover textbooks through the mail. They named their company "Dover" after their apartment building in Queens, New York.
First Big Success
Dover published its first book, Tables of Functions with Formulas and Curves, in 1941. This happened because the original German copyright was canceled during World War II. The book was surprisingly popular. This success helped Dover decide to focus on publishing special books at low prices.
One of Dover's best-selling books was Albert Einstein's The Principle of Relativity. Einstein was not sure about reprinting it because he thought it was old. However, he agreed, and it became a big hit for Dover.
Changing the Book Market
Dover helped change how paperback books were sold. In 1951, they released some of the first standard-sized paperbacks. This type of book is now known as a trade paperback.
Since the 1960s, most of Dover's books have been paperbacks of different sizes. Unlike many paperbacks that use glue, Dover's paperbacks often had sewn pages. This made them stronger and less likely to lose pages.
Language Courses and Music
In the 1950s, Dover also created "Listen & Learn" language courses. These courses were often made with teachers from Columbia University. For a while, Dover even sold LP music records. They reissued old recordings and released new ones. However, their music business was not as successful as their book publishing, so they stopped.
Dover Thrift Editions
Starting in the 1990s, Dover began publishing a special line of very affordable books called "Dover Thrift Editions." These books are usually priced at US$5 or less. They also have many books in different languages.
Changes in Ownership
Hayward Cirker passed away in 2000. In the same year, Courier Corporation bought Dover Publications. Later, in 2015, RR Donnelley acquired Courier.
In 2016, RR Donnelley split into three companies. Dover then became part of LSC Communications. In 2020, LSC Communications faced financial difficulties. The company was then bought by Atlas Holdings in December 2020.
Blanche Cirker, the co-founder, passed away in 2022.
See also
In Spanish: Dover Publications para niños
