World of Literature, publishing house, 1918-1924

Categories / Literature. Book Publishing/Publishing Houses
WORLD OF LITERATURE, a publishing house established in 1918 by M. Gorky, A.N. Tikhonov and I.P. Ladyzhnikov attached to the People's Comissariat for Education of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. The publishing house was aimed at the translation and publishing of foreign literature in Russian. The editing of books was carried out at editorial boards (a Western Department, an Oriental Department and a Poetic Department); their staff included Gorky, A.A. Blok, N.S. Gumilev, I.Y. Krachkovsky, K.I. Chukovsky et al. World of Literature represented one the major cultural centres of Petrograd of the early 1920s, with over 80 writers and scientists working there. World of Literature was the first publishing house to introduce a workshop for literary translation (headed by Blok, Chukovsky and M.L. Lozinsky). The publishing house issued nearly 200 titles in 7 series (Master Series, Popular Series, News of Foreign Literature Series etc.), along with Sovremenny Zapad journal and Sovremenny Vostok journal. From September 1918 the editorial office of World of Literature was situated at 64 Nevsky Prospect, in the beginning of 1919 it moved to 36 Mokhovaya Street. The same building housed a vast library of foreign fiction which numbered 69,900 volumes; in 1922 it was granted to the Public Library. The printing-office of the publishing house was situated at 34 Ligovsky Avenue. In 1919, World of Literature issued a prospective booklet catalogue of its editions which comprised 1,500 titles (contemporaries called it the Utopia of the 20th century). After it lost Gorky's support, the publishing house eventually was affiliated to Lengiz (Leningrad Department of the State Publishing House) by the end of 1924. Many of its unfulfilled projects were carried out by Academia publishing house.

References: Шомракова И. А. Книгоиздательство "Всемирная литература" (1918-1924) // Книга: Исслед. и материалы. М., 1967. Сб. 14. С. 175-193; Баренбаум И. Е. Книжный Петербург: Три века истории: Очерки изд. дела и кн. торговли. СПб., 2003. С. 331-336.

T. M. Dvinyatina. Blok G.P.
Chukovsky Korney Ivanovich
Gorky Maxim (Alexey Maximovich Peshkov)
Gumilev Nikolay Stepanovich
Krachkovsky Ignaty Yulianovich
Ladyzhnikov Ivan Pavlovich
Lozinsky Mikhail Leonidovich
Tikhonov Alexander Nikolaevich
Ligovsky Ave/Saint Petersburg, city, house 34
Mokhovaya St./Saint Petersburg, city, house 36
Nevsky prospect/Saint Petersburg, city, house 64
Шомракова И. А. Книгоиздательство «Всемирная литература» (1918–1924) // Книга: Исслед. и материалы. М., 1967 Academia, publishing house, 1921-1937
1918