George Allen & Unwin as a publishing imprint reflected a cross-section of the intellectual achievement of the Twentieth Century. In his Remembrancer, former chairman Rayner Unwin traces the vicissitudes of his own time with the company. It is a personal history, with reflections on the delights and dangers of a style of publishing that is fast vanishing. He focuses initially on the excitements and innovations of the post-war period, with memories of authors like Tolkien and Thor Heyerdahl, Bertrand Russell and Roald Dahl. However, when Rayner Unwin takes up the story decades later, weaknesses were exposed and attempts to remedy them failed. The eventual take-over of the company and its extinction was a sad conclusion. The book finishes with these sequence of events, and thereby winds up the history of a distinguished firm. Free shipping with USPS Media Mail. Shipped insured with signature confirmation required.