Penguin Random House India (PRHI) on Friday clarified that it is not the publisher of Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s much-anticipated memoir Belonging: A Journey of Love, rejecting reports that the publishing house had decided against publishing the book following a disagreement over editorial changes. "Penguin Random House India is not the publisher of Belonging in India. Any suggestion that Penguin Random House India decided not to publish Belonging because the author declined editorial changes does not accurately reflect the circumstances," a company spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said that fact-checking manuscripts and suggesting changes are a routine part of the publishing process. “As a publisher, it is both our prerogative and our responsibility to fact check and provide authors with recommendations that are in the best interests of their books. This is a normal part of the publishing process. Throughout the relevant discussions, Penguin Random House India's position was that we remained willing and keen to publish the book,” the spokesperson added.
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PRHI also declined to provide further details about its discussions with the author, citing confidentiality. The spokesperson also said the publication will “not comment further on confidential discussions with the author”. The clarification follows a report by The Indian Express, which claimed that PRHI had decided not to publish the memoir over “editorial changes and deletions” sought by the publisher in a section of the manuscript. According to the report, Gandhi allegedly refused to accept the requested changes. The memoir is scheduled for an international release on November 10 through Alfred A Knopf, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Knopf had earlier announced an initial print run of one lakh copies.
Titled Belonging: A Journey of Love, the memoir is expected to chronicle Sonia Gandhi’s life journey, from her childhood in post-war Italy to her move to India and marriage to former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. The book is also expected to explore some of the major tragedies that shaped her life, including the deaths of Sanjay Gandhi, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.
It is likely to cover Gandhi’s entry into public life and her decades at the centre of one of India’s most prominent political families.
In the publisher’s announcement, Sonia Gandhi said, “Much has been written about my family, but few narratives were able to reach into the truth of their motivations, their actions and even their human failings…My story also offers readers a unique perspective of the social and political changes I have witnessed for six decades.” The latest clarification from PRHI adds a new dimension to the discussion surrounding the highly anticipated memoir, while the book’s international publication remains scheduled for November 10.
