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The Review - FEATURE
Published:19 April 2007

Alessandro Gallenzi and John Calder

Poems greet bookshop’s new chapter

A CHANGING of the literary guard at the famous Calder Bookshop was marked by an evening of poetry on Thursday.
John Calder, the 80-year-old publisher who has published work by Chekhov, Tolstoy, Henry Miller and William Burroughs among countless others, handed over the shop and the Calder publishing imprint to fellow publisher and poet Alessandro Gallenzi.
They swapped extracts from their poetry in the back room of the historic theatre bookshop in The Cut by Waterloo.
Mr Calder said the event was “the old and the new coming together in front of the public”, but insisted that, despite the shop’s reputation, he would accept no money for it.
He said: “I’ve let the shop run down over the years. After 60 years it’s not worth any money. Besides, I’ve never been interested in money – it’s just a term of exchange.”
The fate of the shop and its name has hung in the balance until now, with hiked rent threatening to put it out of business.
Mr Calder hopes the move will “reduce his work hours from 90 to 60 a week” and allow him more time for his own writing and the Godot theatre company, which he runs.
He said: “My last holiday was in 1973. I can’t remember a Christmas Day I haven’t worked. I’ll go on working but without so much of the drudgery.”
His successor, Mr Gallenzi, was delighted to inherit the Calder mantle.
He said: “We’ve always admired the list of authors that John has championed. It’s an honour to continue it. John’s contacts in the theatre world and our modern contacts should be interesting.”
Mr Calder picked Mr Gallenzi and the Alma publishing imprint he founded with his wife from 15 contenders, all vying to continue the Calder name.
He said: “They’re serious, enthusiastic and a lot more energetic than I can be at my age.
“But how things work out, of course, time will tell.”

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