Unnamed Press: Background information when reading The Sisters K

Unnamed Press

This article relates to The Sisters K

Maureen Sun's The Sisters K was published by Los Angeles-based independent publisher Unnamed Press. Founded in 2014 by Chris Heiser and Olivia Taylor Smith, Unnamed Press was intended to be a publisher for international voices and translated literature but has since moved into domestic fare. The Press declares itself "committed to publishing a kaleidoscope of works that challenge the status quo," and in practice this means they have published some exceedingly strange and wonderful books over the past ten years. Their bare-bones staff includes Brandon Taylor (author of The Late Americans, 2023, and Real Life, 2020) as (seemingly the only) Acquisitions Editor, and Art Director Jaya Nicely churning out what is arguably some of the best cover art in the business.

Unnamed Press publishes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry titles, and its annual output has increased gradually since 2014. It published 16 titles in 2024, including The Sisters K and But the Girl. Other titles from this year include Henry, Henry by Allen Bratton, a contemporary queer take on Shakespeare's Henriad, and a history of publishing called The Untold Story of Books by Michael Castleman. The back catalog features an eclectic blend of works, from the Press's first published title, a novel about a Nigerian geologist on a mission to steal a piece of the moon (Deji Olukotun's Nigerians in Space, 2014), to a sociological exploration of gay cruising throughout history (Alex Espinoza's Cruising, 2019).

In 2024, Unnamed Press launched its Smith & Taylor imprint, which reprints classic forward-thinking novels that are "underappreciated" (with cover art featuring fantastic minimalist illustrations of everyday objects against brightly colored backgrounds). The imprint's first releases include Edith Wharton's Twilight Sleep, about a woman chafing against the strictures of "modern" motherhood and marriage in the 1920s, and George Gissing's The Odd Women, an early feminist novel about two sisters who defy traditional gender norms in Victorian-era London.

In addition to books, Unnamed Press produces vinyl recordings of audio works by some of its authors. For example, one can purchase James Elkins' novel Weak in Comparison to Dreams, about a scientific researcher studying zoos while experiencing a series of unsettling nightmares, or one can purchase a vinyl recording of the author reading selections from it over "original piano variations of sheet music that appear in the novel." In some cases, books and vinyl recordings are sold together in bundles.

Unnamed Press stands out in the publishing industry for its clear artistic vision and careful curation of interesting projects by a diverse roster of authors, but also genuinely unique product offerings like those listed above. It also co-owns, with independent press Rare Bird, a bookstore in Highland Park, California called North Figueroa, opened in November 2022.

Filed under Reading Lists

This article relates to The Sisters K. It will run in the November 20, 2024 issue of BookBrowse Recommends.