David Rosenthal, whose Blue Rider Press imprint was shuttered last year by Penguin Random House, is joining Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. He has been tapped as an editor-at-large at HMH and will be, per an HMH spokesperson, acquiring "the same sort of eclectic, distinctive and entertaining titles for which he has long been known." The number of titles he will work on annually has yet to be determined.
Although Rosenthal's hiring comes shortly after HMH closed Eamon Dolan Books, in July, the spokesperson confirmed that Rosenthal is not replacing Dolan, who departed with the closing of his eponymous imprint.
Rosenthal, a veteran publisher who ran Blue Rider for seven years, started his literary career at Random House in 1985 as publisher of their Villard imprint. Following Villard, he worked at Simon & Schuster as executive v-p and publisher of the house's anchor imprint. Among the authors he's worked with are Hunter S. Thompson, Jon Krakauer, Bob Dylan, James Cramer, Neil Young and Carrie Fisher.
Speaking to the appointment, Bruce Nichols, senior v-p and publisher of HMH, said: "“I have known and admired David for many years, and I am thrilled that he will bring his creativity, keen editorial eye, and astonishing list of contacts to HMH. He has been a successful journalist and publisher, yet always, in each position, an editor’s editor.”
