Tom Robbins, 92, the author of novels including Jitterbug Perfume, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, and Still Life With Woodpecker, died at his home in La Conner, Washington at age 92. His first novel, Another Roadside Attraction, was published in 1971. Speaking on behalf of Robbins’ family, friend Craig Popelars shared the following: “Tom’s wise and weirdly wonderful novels were filled with magic, mayhem, mythology, imagination, and hi-wire humor—always humor. His books touched readers in the most profound ways, and up until his death he continued to engage with them by responding to their fan mail, sending them hand-written thank […]
Obits
Obituary: Christopher Sinclair-Stevenson
British publisher and literary agent Christopher Sinclair-Stevenson, 85, died on January 20. He was managing director at Hamish Hamilton before launching his own eponymous company in 1990. After that, he worked as a literary agent. Sinclair-Stevenson also wrote three books and translated novels by Georges Simenon.
Obituary: Karen Shapiro
Sourcebooks head of the IP children’s editorial group Karen Shapiro died suddenly and unexpectedly, the company said. Shapiro originated the How to Catch picture books and developed top sellers Welcome Little One, Little Red Sleigh, and books with Sesame Workshop. “Karen truly understood how great stories impact children everywhere, and she inspired everyone in her orbit with her boundless enthusiasm,” publisher and ceo Dominique Raccah said. “Karen made work—made our lives—more fun. We are better for having worked with her, and laughed with her. Karen was perhaps one the most influential modern children’s book creators. She was our friend, our […]
Obituary: Morton Mint
Morton (Morty) Mint, 80, former president and ceo of Penguin Canada and president of Penguin USA, died on January 25. Mint left corporate publishing in the 90s to start his own publisher and Mint Literary Agency. His colleagues write, “His energy, drive, imagination, humour and huge enthusiasm and support for his authors and the local book scene changed lives remarkably… Morty lived with dementia for the last decade of his life and did so without complaint but with increasing sadness that he could no longer read books or absorb long articles.”
Obituaries: Jules Feiffer, Karen Solem
Pulitzer Prize winning writer and cartoonist Jules Feiffer, 95, died on January 17 of congestive heart failure. His comic strip “Feiffer” originally appeared in the Village Voice starting in 1956, and eventually ran in 100 papers. Feiffer won a Pulitzer in 1986. He went on to illustrate the classic edition of The Phantom Tollbooth, among many other works. Karen Solem, former editor, literary agent, and founder of Spencerhill Associates, died on January 19. Solem was “a trailblazer who paved the way for female editors” and published Nora Roberts’ first 100 books, while also playing “a key role in launching the […]
Obituary: John Taylor “Ike” Williams
Co-founder of literary agency Kneerim and Williams (which now operates as Calligraph) John Taylor Williams, known as Ike, died on December 26, 2024 at home in Cambridge, MA at age 86, surrounded by family. A lawyer by training, Williams represented publishing clients and literary rights at the Boston firm Palmer and Dodge before founding Kneerim and Williams with Jill Kneerim in 1990. The Provincetown Independent writes, “Ike possessed what used to be called charisma. When he walked into a restaurant, heads turned as if there were an invisible spotlight on him, even if most in the room had no idea […]