ABOUT US
Continuing one of the great legacies in American publishing, Mariner Books, formerly HMH, publishes a highly curated list of outstanding nonfiction and literary fiction, showcasing dazzling writers with fresh ideas and a broad array of voices. Our authors’ books are bestsellers and award-winners, captivating reads engaged with the world and culture we inhabit. Inspired by our heritage, each title is published with passion and care by a dedicated team that works closely with the author to craft a bespoke marketing and publicity campaign, uniting our deep well of expertise with innovative thinking. Standing on the shoulders of one of the most prestigious backlists in American publishing, Mariner Books publishes for the moment, and also for the ages. Get to know us more—watch our video.
OUR LEGACY
Since 1832, Mariner Books has launched an incomparable roster of landmark works and enduring classics, including Walden, To the Lighthouse, The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, 1984, Animal Farm, Silent Spring, The Handmaid’s Tale, The Color Purple, The Things They Carried, American Pastoral, Interpreter of Maladies, Life of Pi, and Fast Food Nation. We are home to authors Virginia Woolf, George Orwell, Hannah Arendt, Ann Petry, Flannery O’Connor, Carson McCullers, Paul Theroux, Philip K. Dick, Italo Calvino, Elmore Leonard, and Alison Bechdel.
BEST AMERICAN SERIES
Mariner is the home of the prestigious Best American series, which has introduced readers to new literary voices since 1915.
PETERSON GUIDE
Comprehensive and authoritative, the celebrated Peterson Field Guides are the standard by which all other field guides are measured.
@MARINERBOOKS
CONNECT WITH US
OUR HISTORY
Mariner Books traces its beginnings to 1832, when William Ticknor cofounded the Old Corner Bookstore in Boston, Massachusetts, from which he would run the legendary firm Ticknor & Fields, publisher of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Henry David Thoreau. Following Ticknor’s death, Henry Oscar Houghton acquired the Ticknor & Fields list and, in 1880, formed Houghton Mifflin, which soon became one of America’s preeminent publishing houses. In 1997, Houghton Mifflin launched their Mariner imprint to be a premier publisher of outstanding literary fiction and nonfiction in paperback. The 2007 merger of Houghton Mifflin with Harcourt, the revered publishing company founded by Alfred Harcourt and Donald Brace in 1919, combined the legacies and lists of two storied houses. In 2021, HarperCollins Publishers (established 1817) acquired Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s trade publishing business and began publishing HMH’s distinguished adult hardcover and paperbacks lists under the banner of Mariner Books.