Thomas Werner Laurie (1866–1944) was a London publisher of books that were avant-garde in some cases, racy in others.
Early life Laurie was born in Edinburgh. His father was a Scot and his mother a German.
Career He founded his T. Werner Laurie Ltd. publishing house in 1904Laurie (married name Seyler), Joan Ann Werner (1920–1964), Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online version). Retrieved 21 May 2019. and was known for publishing the works of Yeats, Wilde, and Moore as well as other authors of lesser renown.
He published The Jungle by Upton Sinclair when that work had been rejected for publication in England by other publishers, and Sinclair stayed with Laurie for many years in gratitude, publishing World's End and other novels in Sinclair's Lanny Budd series.
Other books issued in the firm's eclectic publishing programme included The Encyclopaedia of Sex and The History of Torture through the Ages.
In 1946, after Laurie's death, his publishing firm was purchased by the financier Clarence Hatry, and it continued to operate in premises above Hatchards booksellers at 187 Piccadilly, London, with George Greenfield as the manager.George Greenfield, A Smattering of Monsters: A Kind of Memoir, Camden House, 1995.Chris Swinson, Share Trading, Fraud and the Crash of 1929: A Biography of Clarence Hatry, Routledge, 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
Book series published by T. Werner Laurie Ltd. The Cathedral SeriesThe Cathedrals of England and Wales / by T. Francis Bumpus Bumpus, T. Francis (Thomas Francis), nla.gov.au. Retrieved 22 May 2019. (author of each volume: T. Francis Bumpus) Classical Library Eclectic Library (also known as: T. Werner Laurie's Eclectic Library: Books for the Household)Publisher's advertisement in final pages of: Guy Cadogan Rothery, Chimneypieces and Ingle Nooks, Their Design and Ornamentation, London, T. Werner Laurie, ca. 1912 (The House Decoration Series). Retrieved 20 January 2021. The Farmer's LibraryWilliam Macdonald, The Conquest of the Desert, London: T. Werner Laurie Ltd., c. 1913. Retrieved 20 January 2021. The Garden BookletsPublisher's advertisement in closing pages of: Adele and Thomas Seltzer, trs., Atlantis: A Novel by Gerhardt Hauptmann, London: T. Werner Laurie, 1920. Retrieved 20 January 2021. The House Decoration SeriesPublisher's advertisement in first pages of: Guy Cadogan Rothery, Chimneypieces and Ingle Nooks, Their Design and Ornamentation, London, T. Werner Laurie, ca. 1912 (The House Decoration Series). Retrieved 20 January 2021. Laurie's Half-Crown Net Novels Laurie's Shilling (Net) Books Laurie's Shilling Reprints Laurie's Two-Shillings Net Novels The Leather Booklets The Library of Sports Live Books ResurrectedLive Books Resurrected, seriesofseries.com. Retrieved 26 June 2023. The Music Lover's LibraryList in first pages of Gladys Davidson, Stories from the Operas, with Short Biographies of the Composers: Third Series, London: T. Werner Laurie, c. 1910. Retrieved 13 December 2021. Old English Towns Sixpenny Books The Old Time BookletsClosing pages of: Theodore Goodridge Roberts, The Toll of the Tides, Lond: T. Werner Laurie, 1914. Retrieved 20 January 2021. Sex Education Library (also known as: The Library of Sex Education)Opening and closing pages of: Walter M. Gallichan, Sexual Apathy and Coldness in Women, London: T. Werner Laurie Limited, 1927. Retrieved 20 January 2021. Uniform Library Edition of the Works of Guy de Maupassant Uniform Library Edition of the Works of Pierre Loti
Personal life Thomas Werner Laurie married twice. His second wife was (Elizabeth Mary) Beatrice (born 1895). Their daughter, Joan Werner Laurie (1920–1964), edited She, a periodical for women.
References
External links W. B. Yeats and "A Vision": Prospectus at www.yeatsvision.com Cover Art from Selected Books by M.P. Shiel at www.alangullette.com