ASTRA PUBLISHING HOUSE ACQUIRES DAW, PREEMINENT PUBLISHER OF SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY
Book Advisors LLC represented DAW Books in this transaction.
New York, NY (July 13, 2022): Today Astra Publishing House announces that it has acquired DAW Books. Leying Jiang, President and CFO of APH said, “We’re so thrilled to have DAW Books and its talented team joining Astra Publishing House. It feels like we are adding another bright star to our growing program. And so this acquisition marks a new milestone to Astra’s journey to a successful future.”
Founded in 1971, DAW Books–the first publishing company ever devoted exclusively to science fiction and fantasy–boasts a backlist that includes Patrick Rothfuss, Tad Williams, C. S. Friedman, C. J. Cherryh, Mercedes Lackey, Kristen Britain, Melanie Rawn, and Tanith Lee. Until now, DAW has been a private company, owned exclusively by its publishers Elizabeth R. Wollheim and Sheila E. Gilbert, partnered with and distributed by Penguin Random House.
DAW co-publishers Betsy Wollheim and Sheila Gilbert said, “We are extremely pleased by Astra’s enthusiasm, and thrilled that we will be the sole SFF imprint of their company (a first for DAW!). We think this is the perfect fit for us, and it’s exciting and refreshing to be an integral part of a new and growing company. It speaks volumes about Astra’s respect for our company that they have included our entire staff. We’re very happy.”
Astra Publishing House (formerly Thinkingdom LTD) has continuously expanded since it was established in 2016. Its adult imprint, Astra House, publishes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. In September 2021, the formation of Astra Books for Young Readers, made up of six imprints, was announced. In February of this year, it was announced that TOON Books, a publisher dedicated to comics and graphic books, would become the seventh imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers.
Ben Schrank, COO of Astra Publishing House, said, “We’re so excited to have DAW join our group here at APH. We have long been impressed with their amazing authors and unparalleled place in the pantheon of science fiction and fantasy publishing. We can’t wait to help them build on their legacy so they can continue to publish the very best books in their genre.”
David Lamb and Susan Reich of Book Advisors LLC initiated the transaction and served as lead investment banking representative for DAW, alongside Kuo-Yu Liang of Ku Worldwide LLC. Alan J. Kaufman served as counsel to DAW.