The Hachette Book Group continues to look for ways to increase its presence in the nonfiction market, agreeing to acquire Black Dog & Leventhal in a deal set to close in the next several months. Founded in 1993 by J.P. Leventhal, the company publishes illustrated books and “creative “nonfiction and has a backlist of about 250 titles. BD&L will become an imprint of Hachette Books, the HBG division headed by Mauro DiPreta that focuses mainly on nonfiction and includes the titles bought from Hyperion last year.
J.P. Leventhal will continue as publisher of the company he started and two BD&L executives have been promoted to new jobs: Rebecca Koh will be editorial director, and Maureen Winter is associate publisher. The company will continue to publish between 20 and 30 titles annually. Among its recent bestsellers are The Complete Cartoons of the New Yorker, Skyscrapers, Take Me Out to the Ballpark, and The Complete Front Pages of the New York Times.
HBG CEO Michael Pietsch said, “I’m very excited to bring Black Dog & Leventhal to Hachette. J.P Leventhal and his team have developed an excellent reputation worldwide for their creative, diverse list of non-fiction and illustrated visual books, a list that fits perfectly inside our Hachette Books division. The addition of the BD&L publishing program will enhance our non-fiction and backlist portfolios, important areas of focus for HBG, and will expand our strength in specialty retail stores and museum shops.”
The purchase comes about four months after HBG’s attempt to acquire the Perseus Books Group fell apart a few days before it was set to close.
