Gave up halfway through. Overwritten, gossipy, name-dropping, and badly needed an editor. ( )

This book is to publishing as Mad Men is to advertising. But the book was a little too detailed for me with all the deal making. There were parts of the book I really enjoyed (the gossipy stories about authors and editors) and other parts I found myself skimming. The ins and outs of deal making just didn't hold my interest. Overall though it's a good history of publishing from the 1950s onward and it's wonderfully written. ( )

The book publishing industry has a whole lot going on behind the scenes that is worthy of being captured and retold, including the drama of underpaid and exploited employees, quasi-legal deals, and impatient investors but also triumphs of the art form and the generous personalities. This book offers a touch of all of those as it gives the 70-ish year history of the publishing house FSG. There is also gossip and stories of mostly believable bad behavior as editors tried to rein in infamous authors like Tom Wolfe, Susan Sontag, and, yes, the recently passed Joan Didion. I flew through it and found it guilty fun; lots of name-dropping and office affairs, but also a chronicle of a place with heart. ( )

The first couple of chapters was a bunch of confusing name-dropping as well as there generations of Straus all vaguely called by their last name. Eventually the names became distinguished, but again it took awhile before that happened. Very interesting insight into the old days of publishing. ( )

Business 'Biography' of the New York City publishing house,Farrar, Straus & Giroux -- chock full of delicious tidbits and gossip from inside the world of books, authors,agents and editors. The main stars are industry giants, Roger Straus and Robert Giroux. I'd just finished two fictional works on publishing: Matthew Pearl's 'The Bookaneer" about literary piracy, and Janathan Galassi's roman a clef, "Muse". Seemed like just the right time to take an actual look behind the scenes. Entertaining read. ( )