When Penguin first started in the 1930s, it went in for colour coding to distinguish the different genres - orange and white for general fiction; green and white for crime fiction; dark blue and white for biographies; and so on. This was done so that the reader could easily make out where the book was slotted. There were no cover images.
After the Pearson takeover, Penguin moved away from the look. “The orange colour had great brand equity - it's very unfortunate that they gave it up,” says Harish Bijoor.
Well, in its 25th year, Penguin India, emulating the Australian and New Zealand markets, is bringing the old look back. To start with, it has handpicked 25 of what it considers the most significant books it has published here (Amartya Sen's Argumentative Indian and Vikram Seth's The Suitable Boy among them) and issued them in the old colours.
Called Popular Penguins, these original ethos books are also being offered at more accessible prices. It remains to be seen whether they click with the reader.
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Published on January 25, 2012
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