Meet Us Monday: Gary Gentel

Today HMH Trade & Reference President Gary Gentel shares his answers to our staff survey. 

What do you do here at HMH?

My title says I’m the President of the Trade and Reference Group which implies I’m the boss. Even though I’ve been in this job for about 4 years, I haven’t quite come to grips with what that means just yet.  Give me another 4 years to figure it out. 

What is your favorite HMH book of all time?

Prince of Tides—I’m ashamed to admit I didn’t even know Houghton Mifflin had published this book until a few years ago.  I love Pat Conroy’s sense of place and the story he shares of his love affair with the low country region of South Carolina. 

What is the last non-HMH book that you read?

In the Garden of Beasts, by Erik Larson.

What’s your favorite at-work diversion?

Watching the dog walkers come up Berkeley Street with 5 or 6 dogs on a leash.  It never fails to make me smile.

Can you share a little anecdote about the office?

Several years ago, my daughter worked for the Houghton Mifflin college division, on the 6th floor at 222 Berkeley, where the Trade Division currently resides.  She sat in a cube not too far from my current office.

Do you have a favorite poet/poem, that has special meaning to you?

I’m not a big fan of poetry generally, but anything Mary Oliver writes is a masterpiece.  I especially like her poem, “Snow Geese”, which appeared in the collection called “Why I Wake Early”.  A few lines:

“Oh, to love what is lovely, and will not last.  What a task to ask of anything, or anyone, yet it is ours, and not by the century or the year, but by the hours.”

What’s your favorite word?

Thank-You (well, that’s two words, but you get the idea)

What’s your biggest food guilty pleasure?

Ben & Jerry’s Chubby Hubby ice cream (can’t you tell?)

If you could jump into an HMH book…

…which Lord of the Rings character would you be?

Sam Gamgee—his loyalty and devotion to Frodo is awe-inspiring.  

…which Best American would you choose, and why?

Travel—the armchair appeal of visiting far-flung places.  

…which animal on the raft in Life of Pi would you be?

Was there a mouse?  If so, I would have been the mouse hiding under the gunnels. 

… which cookbook would best suit your foodie dreams?

Well, considering I have trouble making bacon and eggs at the same time, I’d have to say “Help, My Apartment has a Kitchen”

…what sort of creature from a Peterson Field Guide would you be?

A Kingfisher—I love the spiky hair.

Bookpets

Around here at HMH, we love books. Producing them, reading them, and just generally sharing space with them. We also have an affinity, as most Internet users do, for cute animals.

And so this wild idea was born to ask you, followers/fans/friends, please send us your pictures of animals with books, HERE. (Alternatively, the Submit a Bookpets Photo link at the top of our blog.) 

Don’t disappoint us - we know how creative you are!

Meet Us Monday: Carla Gray

Looking to learn more about life at HMH? Director of Marketing for Adult Books, Carla Gray, was nice enough to complete this week’s Meet Us Monday staff survey.

What do you do here at HMH?

I like to consider myself a walking Mariner backlist reference, but that only comes into play periodically.  I do think of myself as Defender of Fiction, but that’s more like my super-hero status than it is my actual job.  Sometimes I vigilantly remind others about manners, and often I police fashion choices.  But mostly, I market our books.

What is your favorite HMH book of all time?  

I’d happily follow Larry Cooper with The Visible World, but to mix things up, how about a little love for Forgetfulness by Ward Just?

What is the last non-HMH book that you read?

Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson

What’s your favorite at-work diversion?

I maniacally follow the HMH social media feed- Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook.  It is absolutely addictive.

Can you share a little anecdote about the office?

I first started at Houghton in Telephone Sales.  I covered the East Coast, John Mendelson covered the West.  We sat in adjacent cubicles, and across from John sat Kevin Logan.  Each afternoon at around 4-ish, we’d engage in battle.  We all had those ancient, dinosaur-like computer monitors; John kept a small rubber Buddha atop his, and Kevin had a tempting array of tchotchkes such as small, throwable bean bags near his.  We’d line up in Kevin’s cube, and “Bean the Buddha.”  Extra points if you not only knocked the Buddha off his perch, but also shut-off the monitor!

Do you have a favorite poet/poem that has special meaning to you?

Richard Wilbur!  Last August, Liz Anderson and I drove to Western MA and spent a fantastic afternoon with the former Poet Laureate, who is as welcoming, generous, and lovely as is humanly possible.  I’ve always loved his poetry, so meeting him in person (and hearing him recite poems, such as “Galveston 1961”) was an experience I’ll forever cherish.

What was the last book you read that wasn’t set in the U.S.?

George, Nicholas and Wilhelm: Three Royal Cousins and the Road to World War I by Miranda Carter

What’s your favorite word?

Right?  (Annoyingly true.  I’ve suddenly found myself using “right” as an entire sentence, followed by a question mark.  Offensive stuff, right?)

What’s your biggest food guilty pleasure?

Oysters and kale.  And I don’t feel guilty AT ALL.

If you could jump into an HMH book, which would it be?

Well, I’ll use this Q&A as an excuse to highlight what I’d likely do if I wasn’t happily employed in the HMH marketing department… I’d bet the horses full-time.    A little-known backlist gem, recently resurrected by the digital revolution, is My $50,000 Year at the Races by Andrew Beyer.  (Andy is the author of the three indispensible guides to horserace handicapping; Picking Winners, The Winning Horseplayer, and Beyer on Speed, all published by HMH.)  I’d jump right into that book, and shadow Andy as he takes on the pari-mutuels.

Check out Carla and Liz’s video from their trip to meet former Poet Laureate Richard Wilbur!

Meet Us Monday: Ellen Sugg

This week’s staff survey has been completed by Ellen Sugg, a National Accounts Manager (and avid tweeter at @bookred!).

What do you do here at HMH?

I’m a sales rep serving educational wholesalers and a few great independent booksellers in the Midwest.

What is your favorite HMH book of all time?

Some of my favorite writers started out at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.  Our HM rep when I was a bookseller, introduced me to Robert Parker with PROMISED LAND.  I read LORDS OF DISCIPLINE in one gulp when HM published it years ago…  I loved COLD SASSY TREE, SLAMMERKIN and THE COLOR PURPLE, but I think my favorite is LIFE OF PI.  I read it in ms on the way to launch and realized at one point that I was holding my breath.  That doesn’t happen very often.

What is the last non-HMH book that you read?

Our book group is composed of folks who are or at one time were involved in the book business in the Twin Cities and we just read SOJOURN by Andrew Krivek. It’s a beautiful little novel set during WWI.

What’s your favorite at-work diversion?

My favorite thing about my job is sitting with folks who sell books to the public and talking about books.  When I am in the office on the lower level of our home, I love watching a tom turkey or the occasional pheasant admire his own reflection in my office window.

Can you share a little anecdote about the office?  

Once when Cara Coggins was helping me with a knotty and persistent problem, she inspired Casey Whalen to design a very silly t-shirt to commemorate it. Maybe one day, I’ll get it printed up – but it’s a shark (rather than a dolphin) swallowing a very harried looking person with red hair.

Do you have a favorite poet/poem that has special meaning to you?  

I like to think I am an optimist, but “AFRAID SO” by Jeanne Marie Beaumont speaks to me.  Google it and you’ll see.

What was the last book you read that wasn’t set in the U.S.?  

THE MAID, by Kimberly Cutter.

What’s your favorite word?

My dad had a thing for antidisestablishmentarianism, so that’s a sentimental favorite – but I don’t often have a reason to use it.  

What’s your biggest food guilty pleasure?  

Ice cream.  Any flavor, any time.

If you could jump into an HMH cookbook, which would it be? 

I would cook with a fraction of Dorie Greenspan’s élan and skill from AROUND MY FRENCH TABLE.

Meet Us Monday: Teresa Kravtin

It’s a new week and that means another chance to meet a member of the HMH team! We’re heading down south to get to know Sales Representative Teresa Kravtin.

What do you do here at HMH?

Well, I’m not exactly HERE at HMH. I am a commission sales representative with Southern Territory Associates and I cover a portion of the south for HMH. My territory includes parts of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, and the panhandle of Florida. I sell select bookstore accounts within the territory. There are two intrepid HMH sales reps that graciously share their territory with me and my colleagues.

What is your favorite HMH book of all time?

These are trick questions! Asking a sales rep to name a favorite book is like asking a mother to designate a favorite child. Oh, OK. I’ll play. I’ll offer two: COLD SASSY TREE by Olive Ann Burns and THE QUIET BOOK by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Renata Liwska. I read COLD SASSY TREE when it was first published in 1983. A luscious southern novel set in small town Georgia in 1906. I’m partial to southern books set in Georgia. Because I’m a flute player by trade, I love THE QUIET BOOK, a picture book for children of all ages. It appeals to my inner musician. Quiet is equally as important to me as sound or music, and Ms. Liwska includes wonderful flute players in her illustrations. Be still my heart.

What is the last non-HMH book that you read?

PETER NIMBLE AND HIS FANTASTIC EYES by Jonathan Auxier

What’s your favorite at-work diversion?

See photos. Enough said.

Can you share a little anecdote about the office?

I work at home, when I’m not on the road. What is the office? LOL! There are people that work in an office somewhere?

Do you have a favorite poet/poem that has special meaning to you?

I’m going to cheat and refer back to music here. Poetry is to literature, what classical music is to music. I’m exploring poetry more and more, and plan a blog post very soon about poetry. My favorite piece of music is Concierto Pastoral by Joaquin Rodrigo. That’s my poetry. I was introduced to poet Julie Cadwallader-Staub by a dear friend and former bookseller. Her book of poetry, FACE TO FACE, is exquisite. This same friend sends me audio snippets of Garrison Keillor reading poetry, and when I visit her, she reads her favorite poems aloud. I think it’s just wonderful. We should all have friends like that.

What was the last book you read that wasn’t set in the U.S.?

A MONSTER CALLS by Patrick Ness. Set in the UK.

What’s your favorite word?

Abundant

What’s your biggest food guilty pleasure?

Hmmm … is it wine or chocolate?

If you could jump into an HMH book, which would it be? 

It’s a crazy stretch, but I’d jump into an upcoming non-fiction book by Diana Reiss, THE DOLPHIN IN THE MIRROR. I can’t wait to read it. I’d be a dolphin. I went swimming with dolphins MANY years ago on three occasions. It was a life bucket list achievement. They are amazing animals.