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Dear friends of good books,
We Americans have entered into a new historic era. For nearly twenty-five years, Coffee House Press has consistently brought to life the voices of new Americans through prose and poetry. Now, with your contributions, Coffee House can turn the page to the next chapter of exceptional fireside reading.
As a supporter of Coffee House Press, you have much to celebrate. Sam Savage's Firmin—about the coming-of-age of a well-read rat in 1960s Boston—has sold more than 500,000 copies worldwide and has been translated into twelve languages, and counting. Patricia Smith is a finalist for the National Book Award for her book of poetry, Blood Dazzler. And Wang Ping won the Minnesota Book Award for fiction for her collection of short stories, The Last Communist Virgin.
We knew that we had friends, but were touched to find out that our friends are greater in number and more generous than we realized. In October, Coffee House celebrated the opening of its new space in the Grain Belt Brewery building with Andrei Codrescu, the celebrated poet, National Public Radio commentator, and New Orleans resident, who read for a packed house of more than 200 individuals.
Successes like these only serve to reinforce our reputation as a trusted publisher of new ideas, experiences, and expressions by talented authors. The Archibald G. Bush Foundation has validated our thriving "restless curiosity" with a ten-year grant that will help us map out a vision for the future. This exciting new era of Coffee House's existence—uncommon among small publishers—means that strong new voices of literary fiction will echo well into the future.
This is where you come in. These are uncertain times for everyone, no exceptions. To put things in context, the nonprofit publishing industry is traditionally one of the least likely to succeed—we can only sell one book at a time, usually at cost. It is only with the support and generosity of people like you, who view a good read as essential to feeding your soul, that we can continue.
Your gift of $100 or more gets you in the "Percolators" club, which entitles you to your choice of an autographed copy of Famous Suicides of the Japanese Empire by David Mura, or The Last Communist Virgin by Wang Ping, and an acknowledgment of your gift on the Coffee House Web site. Contributors of $1000 or more will be listed in the acknowledgments section of each new book published in 2009.
You can become a "Percolator" at $100 or more by contributing online at www.coffeehousepress.org. Just click on "donate online." We thank you for your past support and look forward to the next generation of freshly brewed books.
Jennifer A. Haugh, President Allan Kornblum, Publisher
P.S. Now through December 31, all Coffee House titles are 40% off when you order through our web site. Happy Holidays!
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