The London Review of Books (or LRB) is a fortnight

Fortnight

The fortnight is a unit of time equal to fourteen days, or two weeks. The word derives from the Old English fēowertyne niht, meaning "fourteen nights"....

ly British magazine of literary

Literary magazine

A literary magazine is a periodical devoted to literature in a broad sense. Literary magazines usually publish short stories, poetry and essays along with literary criticism, book reviews, biographical profiles of authors, interviews and letters...

 and intellectual essays.

History

The LRB was founded in 1979, during the year-long lock-out at The Times

The Times

The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...

, by publisher A. Whitney Ellsworth

A. Whitney Ellsworth

Arthur Whitney Ellsworth was an American editor and publisher best known as the first publisher of The New York Review of Books.In 1957, Ellsworth was President of The Harvard Advocate...

.

Its founding editors were Karl Miller

Karl Miller

Karl Fergus Connor Miller FRSL is a British literary editor, critic and writer.He was educated at the Royal High School of Edinburgh and Downing College, Cambridge, where he studied English. He became literary editor of The Spectator and the New Statesman...

, then professor of English at University College London

University College London

University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...

, Mary-Kay Wilmers

Mary-Kay Wilmers

Mary-Kay Wilmers is an editor and journalist who has been the editor of the London Review of Books since 1992.-Family and education:...

, formerly an editor at The Times Literary Supplement

The Times Literary Supplement

The Times Literary Supplement is a weekly literary review published in London by News International, a subsidiary of News Corporation.-History:...

, and Susannah Clapp, a former editor at Jonathan Cape

Jonathan Cape

Jonathan Cape was a London-based publisher founded in 1919 as "Page & Co" by Herbert Jonathan Cape , formerly a manager at Duckworth who had worked his way up from a position of bookshop errand boy. Cape brought with him the rights to cheap editions of the popular author Elinor Glyn and sales of...

. For its first six months, it appeared as an insert in the New York Review of Books. In May 1980, the London Review became an independent publication with an orientation described by one of its leading contributors as "consistently radical".

Unlike The Times Literary Supplement (TLS), the majority of the articles the LRB publishes (usually fifteen per issue) are long essays. Some articles in each issue are not based on books, while several short articles discuss film or exhibitions. Political and social editorials or essays are frequent.

Mary-Kay Wilmers took over as editor in 1992. Average circulation per issue from 1 January 2009 to 31 December 2009 was 48,555.

In January 2010, The Times

The Times

The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...

reported that the magazine was £27m in debt to Wilmers' family trust, although the trust had "no intention of the lender seeking repayment of the loan in the near future".

Contributors

Notable contributors have included:

Tariq Ali Tariq Ali Tariq Ali , , is a British Pakistani military historian, novelist, journalist, filmmaker, public intellectual, political campaigner, activist, and commentator... Martin Amis Martin Amis Martin Louis Amis is a British novelist, the author of many novels including Money and London Fields . He is currently Professor of Creative Writing at the Centre for New Writing at the University of Manchester, but will step down at the end of the 2010/11 academic year... Benedict Anderson Benedict Anderson Benedict Richard O'Gorman Anderson is Aaron L. Binenkorb Professor Emeritus of International Studies, Government & Asian Studies at Cornell University, and is best known for his celebrated book Imagined Communities, first published in 1983... Perry Anderson Perry Anderson Perry Anderson is a British Leftist intellectual, historian, and political essayist. He is often identified with the post-1956 Western Marxism of the New Left in Europe. He is Professor of History and Sociology at the University of California, Los Angeles and an editor of the New Left Review. He... Neal Ascherson Neal Ascherson Charles Neal Ascherson is a Scottish journalist and writer.- Background :He was born in Edinburgh and educated at Eton and King's College, Cambridge, where he read history. He was described by the historian Eric Hobsbawm as "perhaps the most brilliant student I ever had... John Ashbery John Ashbery John Lawrence Ashbery is an American poet. He has published more than twenty volumes of poetry and won nearly every major American award for poetry, including a Pulitzer Prize in 1976 for his collection Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror. But Ashbery's work still proves controversial... Andrew Bacevich Andrew Bacevich Andrew J. Bacevich, Sr. is a professor of international relations at Boston University and a retired career officer in the United States Army... Julian Barnes Julian Barnes Julian Patrick Barnes is a contemporary English writer, and winner of the 2011 Man Booker Prize, for his book The Sense of an Ending... Alan Bennett Alan Bennett Alan Bennett is a British playwright, screenwriter, actor and author. Born in Leeds, he attended Oxford University where he studied history and performed with The Oxford Revue. He stayed to teach and research mediaeval history at the university for several years... Tony Blair Tony Blair Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007... Anita Brookner Anita Brookner Anita Brookner CBE is an English language novelist and art historian who was born in Herne Hill, a suburb of London.-Early life and education:... Anne Carson Anne Carson Anne Carson is a Canadian poet, essayist, translator and professor of Classics. Carson lived in Montreal for several years and taught at McGill University, the University of Michigan, and at Princeton University from 1980-1987.... Angela Carter Angela Carter Angela Carter was an English novelist and journalist, known for her feminist, magical realism, and picaresque works... Stanley Cavell Stanley Cavell Stanley Louis Cavell is an American philosopher. He is the Walter M. Cabot Professor Emeritus of Aesthetics and the General Theory of Value at Harvard University.-Life:... Bruce Chatwin Bruce Chatwin Charles Bruce Chatwin was an English novelist and travel writer. He won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for his novel On the Black Hill... Patrick Cockburn Patrick Cockburn Patrick Cockburn is an Irish journalist who has been a Middle East correspondent since 1979 for the Financial Times and, presently, The Independent.... Terry Eagleton Terry Eagleton Terence Francis Eagleton FBA is a British literary theorist and critic, who is regarded as one of Britain's most influential living literary critics... William Empson William Empson Sir William Empson was an English literary critic and poet.He was known as "燕卜荪" in Chinese.He was widely influential for his practice of closely reading literary works, fundamental to the New Critics... Paul Farmer Paul Farmer Dr. Paul Edward Farmer is an American anthropologist and physician. He is currently the Kolokotrones University Professor at Harvard University, formerly the Presley Professor of Medical Anthropology in the Department of Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School, an attending physician and Chief... Jerry Fodor Jerry Fodor Jerry Alan Fodor is an American philosopher and cognitive scientist. He holds the position of State of New Jersey Professor of Philosophy at Rutgers University and is the author of many works in the fields of philosophy of mind and cognitive science, in which he has laid the groundwork for the... Paul Foot Paul Foot Paul Mackintosh Foot was a British investigative journalist, political campaigner, author, and long-time member of the Socialist Workers Party... Martha Gellhorn Martha Gellhorn Martha Gellhorn was an American novelist, travel writer and journalist, considered by The London Daily Telegraph amongst others to be one of the greatest war correspondents of the 20th century. She reported on virtually every major world conflict that took place during her 60-year career... Stephen Greenblatt Stephen Greenblatt Stephen Jay Greenblatt is a literary critic, theorist and scholar.Greenblatt is regarded by many as one of the founders of New Historicism, a set of critical practices that he often refers to as "cultural poetics"; his works have been influential since the early 1980s when he introduced the term... Mark Greif Mark Greif Mark Greif is the co-editor, co-founder, and contributor to the magazine n+1, as well as a frequent contributor to American Prospect and occasional contributor to the London Review of Books.-Background and education:... Nigel Hamilton Nigel Hamilton (author) Nigel Hamilton is an award-winning British-born biographer, academic and broadcaster, whose works have been translated into sixteen languages. In the United States he is known primarily for his best-selling work on the young John F. Kennedy, JFK: Reckless Youth, which was made into an ABC... Christopher Hitchens Christopher Hitchens Christopher Eric Hitchens is an Anglo-American author and journalist whose books, essays, and journalistic career span more than four decades. He has been a columnist and literary critic at The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, Slate, World Affairs, The Nation, Free Inquiry, and became a media fellow at the... Eric Hobsbawm Eric Hobsbawm Eric John Ernest Hobsbawm , CH, FBA, is a British Marxist historian, public intellectual, and author... Tony Judt Tony Judt Tony Robert Judt FBA was a British historian, essayist, and university professor who specialized in European history. Judt moved to New York and served as the Erich Maria Remarque Professor in European Studies at New York University, and Director of NYU's Erich Maria Remarque Institute... Frank Kermode Frank Kermode Sir John Frank Kermode was a highly regarded British literary critic best known for his seminal critical work The Sense of an Ending: Studies in the Theory of Fiction, published in 1967 ....

Colin Kidd Colin Kidd Professor Colin Craig Kidd MA, D.Phil, F.R.Hist.S, F.S.A.Scot, FRSE, is a historian specialising in American and Scottish history. He is currently Professor of Intellectual History and the History of Political Thought at Queen's University Belfast, where he has worked since leaving the University... India Knight India Knight India Knight is a British journalist and author. She is known for her contribution to the British media, as well as her books: My Life on a Plate, Don't You Want Me?, The Shops, Neris and India's Idiot-Proof Diet and The Thrift Book , all of which are published by Penguin books... John Lanchester John Lanchester John Henry Lanchester is a British journalist and novelist. He was born in Hamburg, brought up in Hong Kong and educated in England, at Gresham's School, Holt between 1972 and 1980 and St John's College, Oxford.-Works:... Donald MacKenzie Hilary Mantel Hilary Mantel Hilary Mary Mantel CBE , née Thompson, is an English novelist, short story writer and critic. Her work, ranging in subject from personal memoir to historical fiction, has been short-listed for major literary awards... Wyatt Mason Wyatt Mason -Background and education:Mason was raised in Manhattan. He attended The Fieldston School in New York, the University of Pennsylvania, and also studied literature at Columbia University and the University of Paris.-Career:... Hugh Miles Hugh Miles (journalist) Hugh Miles is an award-winning freelance journalist and author, a presenter, producer and consultant specialising in the Middle East. Miles is contributing editor of Arab Media and Society, a media journal published by the American University in Cairo's Centre for Television... Tom Nairn Tom Nairn Tom Nairn Born in born 2 June 1932 in Freuchie, Fife) is a Scottish theorist of nationalism.Prof Tom Nairn is a Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Government and International Affairs at Durham University... Martha Nussbaum Martha Nussbaum Martha Nussbaum , is an American philosopher with a particular interest in ancient Greek and Roman philosophy, political philosophy and ethics.... Andrew O'Hagan Andrew O'Hagan Andrew O'Hagan, FRSL is a Scottish novelist and non-fiction author. He is also an Editor at Large of Esquire and is currently a creative writing fellow at King's College London. He was selected by for inclusion in their 2003 list of the top 20 young British novelists. His novels appear... Tom Paulin Tom Paulin Thomas Neilson Paulin is a Northern Irish poet and critic of film, music and literature. He lives in England, where he is the GM Young Lecturer in English Literature at Hertford College, Oxford.- Life and work :... Nicholas Penny Nicholas Penny Nicholas Penny, FSA is a British art historian. Since Spring 2008 he has been director of the National Gallery in London.... Adam Phillips Adam Phillips (psychologist) Adam Phillips is a British child psychotherapist, literary critic and essayist. He is known for his books dealing with topics related to psychoanalysis... Hilary Putnam Hilary Putnam Hilary Whitehall Putnam is an American philosopher, mathematician and computer scientist, who has been a central figure in analytic philosophy since the 1960s, especially in philosophy of mind, philosophy of language, philosophy of mathematics, and philosophy of science... Richard Rorty Richard Rorty Richard McKay Rorty was an American philosopher. He had a long and diverse academic career, including positions as Stuart Professor of Philosophy at Princeton, Kenan Professor of Humanities at the University of Virginia, and Professor of Comparative Literature at Stanford University... Jacqueline Rose Jacqueline Rose Jacqueline Rose is a British academic who is currently Professor of English at Queen Mary, University of London.-Life and work:... David Runciman David Runciman The Hon. David Walter Runciman is a British political scientist who teaches political theory at Cambridge University and is a fellow of Trinity Hall, Cambridge, where he was educated following Eton College.... Salman Rushdie Lorna Sage Lorna Sage Lorna Sage was a Welsh-born academic, as well as an award-winning literary critic and author, known widely for her contribution to the consideration of women's writing.-Biography:... Edward Said Edward Said Edward Wadie Saïd was a Palestinian-American literary theorist and advocate for Palestinian rights. He was University Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University and a founding figure in postcolonialism... Raphael Samuel Raphael Samuel Raphael Elkan Samuel was a British Marxist historian, described by Stuart Hall as "one of the most outstanding, original intellectuals of his generation" . He was professor of history at the University of East London at the time of his death and also taught at Ruskin College from 1962 until his... Elaine Showalter Elaine Showalter Elaine Showalter is an American literary critic, feminist, and writer on cultural and social issues. She is one of the founders of feminist literary criticism in United States academia, developing the concept and practice of gynocritics.She is well known and respected in both academic and popular... Iain Sinclair Iain Sinclair Iain Sinclair FRSL is a British writer and filmmaker. Much of his work is rooted in London, most recently within the influences of psychogeography.-Life and work:... Susan Sontag Susan Sontag Susan Sontag was an American author, literary theorist, feminist and political activist whose works include On Photography and Against Interpretation.-Life:... Ernest Sackville Turner Ernest Sackville Turner Ernest Sackville Turner was a freelance journalist and author who published 20 books, and contributed to the English weekly satirical magazine Punch for more than 50 years.-Biography:E. S... Colm Tóibín Colm Tóibín Colm Tóibín is a multi-award-winning Irish novelist, short story writer, essayist, playwright, journalist, critic, and, most recently, poet.Tóibín is Leonard Milberg Lecturer in Irish Letters at Princeton University in New Jersey and succeeded Martin Amis as professor of creative writing at the... Marina Warner James Wood James Wood (critic) James Wood is a literary critic, essayist and novelist. he is Professor of the Practice of Literary Criticism at Harvard University and a staff writer at The New Yorker magazine.-Background and education:... Slavoj Žižek Slavoj Žižek Slavoj Žižek is a Slovenian philosopher, critical theorist working in the traditions of Hegelianism, Marxism and Lacanian psychoanalysis. He has made contributions to political theory, film theory, and theoretical psychoanalysis....

External links

• London Review of Books website
• London Review of Books Digital Edition
• London Review of Books on twitter
• "30 Years of LRB", the Third Estate website