About Prometheus Books

Provocative, progressive and independent for 40 Years, Prometheus Books has more than 2,000 books in print, and produces an average of 110 new titles a year. Prometheus Books is committed to testing the boundaries of established thought and providing readers with thoughtful and authoritative books in a wide variety of categories.

Prometheus Books took its name from the courageous Greek god who gave fire to humans, lighting the way to reason, intelligence, and independence. Founded in 1969, Prometheus Books established itself immediately as a leading independent publisher, earning the prestigious endorsements of Isaac Asimov and Carl Sagan.

The leading publisher in popular science, philosophy, and critical thinking, Prometheus Books publishes intelligent nonfiction for the thoughtful lay reader, in categories such as social science, current events, true crime, business, history, philosophy, atheism, humanism, Islamic studies, religion, psychology, health and medicine, self-help, and more. Prometheus’s diverse catalog also includes hundreds of established classics in literature, philosophy, and the sciences.

Prometheus Books presents thoughtful and authoritative works by such distinguished authors as criminalist and forensic scientist Dr. Henry C. Lee; psychiatrist Michael Stone; Nobel Laureate Leon Lederman; Nova host Neil de Grasse Tyson; acclaimed author and activist Michael Parenti; physicist Victor J. Stenger; terrorism expert Brian Michael Jenkins; forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht; psychologist Albert Ellis; criminologist Jack Levin; science popularizer Martin Gardner; mathematics educator Alfred Posamentier; anthropologist Lionel Tiger, and distinguished philosophers Paul Edwards, Antony Flew, Paul Kurtz, Susan Haack, L. Nathan Oaklander, and Richard Taylor, to name a few.

Prometheus Books authors and books are regularly featured in national print, TV, and radio media, including Larry King Live, Today, Good Morning America, Fox & Friends, NPR, CSPAN-2 Book TV, the New York Times, Washington Post, Forbes, USA Today, Wired, and the Wall Street Journal, among others.

Since 1998, Prometheus Books has been building Humanity Books, a scholarly imprint that publishes academic works of high quality across a wide spectrum of the humanities. Designed for scholars, students, and the educated public, it is committed to presenting cutting-edge research in philosophy (both analytic and continental philosophy); the history of philosophy; sociology; history; the history of science; political science; race, ethnicity, and gender studies; and classic works in Black Studies and Women's Studies, among other disciplines.

Prometheus Books launched the Pyr imprint in March 2005 to publish quality science fiction and fantasy—to complement the press’s strength in popular science nonfiction. With an almost instant reputation for quality and innovation, Pyr quickly earned acclaim, awards, and loyal fans, including Pulitzer Prize–winning author Junot Díaz, who called Pyr “the imprint to beat in the science fiction and fantasy fields.”

Pyr currently publishes 40 titles a year and has had works and/or persons nominated for the Hugo, Nebula, Arthur C. Clarke, Philip K. Dick, Endeavour, John W. Campbell Best New Science Fiction Writer, John W. Campbell Memorial, BSFA, and World Fantasy Awards, among others. Pyr Editorial Director Lou Anders—twice nominated for the Hugo Award ‘Best Professional Editor, Long Form’—has become a ‘go-to’ resource for the state of the genre and regularly participates in blogs, podcasts and interviews. This popular boutique brand boasts commercial and critical successes from such authors as Joe Abercrombie, Ian McDonald, Mike Resnick, and Justina Robson. Joe Abercrombie, Ian McDonald, Joel Shepherd, Justina Robson, James Barclay, Kay Kenyon and Mike Resnick.

Prometheus Books has international distribution, rights, and sales representation throughout the world, with domestic and foreign expansion ongoing. Prometheus Books titles are translated into more than 50 different languages. In 2009, the press launched a major e-book initiative, with both nonfiction and science fiction and fantasy titles becoming available on many different e-reader platforms.  Headquartered in Amherst, New York, Prometheus Books currently employs forty-five people.

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