Nathan’s reputation is based on the quality and reliability of its expertise in education, which is appreciated by teachers and the general public alike. However, its exceptional renown – Nathan is one of the best-known French trademarks – is due to a crucial aspect of its identity: the ability to give pleasure. Nathan’s products are all aimed at making learning enjoyable, helping learners make progress without discouraging them, and providing intelligent entertainment.
As a publisher of games, educational books and materials, children’s books and nature guides, Nathan is constantly juxtaposing different bodies of knowledge and finding original ways to combine learning and pleasure. This stance has given Nathan a leading position on a great many markets.
> Nathan as partner of the education system From the primary level to general, technical and vocational secondary schools, Nathan is often in a leading position. Where many of its competitors serve only the markets with the largest numbers of learners, Nathan publishes for all ages and in almost all subjects. This proactive policy reflects the ethos of a publisher that has been supporting the democratization of knowledge ever since it was founded.
> Close to both teachers and pupils Nathan stays in close contact with teachers through its websites and journals, which maintain the dialogue with people out in the field, and through its pedagogical works, which guide the first steps of newly-qualified teachers and stimulate reflection and debate. The Eduscope backlist also makes Nathan the leading publisher of wall maps, transparencies and videos on history and geography.
> Nathan and the pre-primary level The first catalogue of Nathan educational materials, comprising building blocks and furniture designed especially for schools, appeared in 1890. Today, the Educational Materials Department (DME) offers more than 1,000 items for pre-primary schools and other establishments for young children: early childhood stimulation, learning aids, classroom furnishings and physical education equipment.
> A project ahead of its time: the Electronic Satchel Nathan has been a pioneering publisher since its beginnings, and its innovative character is reinforced by participation in ambitious projects like the Electronic Satchel, for which it has produced a number of interactive “textbooks”. This project led Nathan to invent a new kind of educational writing suitable for multimedia.
> Nathan’s scholastic aids: effective and innovative Scholastic aids offer a second chance: focusing on learners’ problems and needs, they are central to Nathan’s aim of democratizing knowledge. Nathan began to contribute to the emergence of the scholastic aids market very early on, publishing workbooks for the holidays and developing the first works designed to help students prepare for examinations: the ABC guide series, which is still going strong. Nathan scholastic aids also include series aimed at a broader public. The “Repères pratiques” series provides brief summaries of a wide variety of fields, with some titles being required reading from junior secondary school to university level.
> Nathan Jeux: learning can be fun Nathan Jeux is a subsidiary of Nathan that publishes and markets educational games for the general public. Its offerings include a range of traditional games with up-to-date illustrations (lotto games, memory and idea-association games, etc.), on topics that children enjoy, and a number of interactive games that use the latest technologies to make learning enjoyable. With a backlist of 80 items and a dozen new releases each year, Nathan Jeux is a major and exceptionally well-known player on this market.
> Nathan for young people: demanding and creative Nathan is active in all segments of publishing for young people, with 250 new releases a year and a catalogue of 1,300 titles. Many well-known authors and illustrators choose Nathan to publish their works, some of which become series in their own right. With its roots in games publishing, Nathan knows what young children want.
Its experience as a scholastic editor allows it not only to excel in non-fiction but also to develop original concepts that are highly educational. Its non-fiction books combine learning and pleasure, emphasize the topics that young readers prefer, and display great pictorial creativity, but make no concessions on the most important point: the reliability of the information provided. Nathan also accompanies children as they are learning to read, offering works that play with language and address children’s favourite themes. Its insistence on quality explains why its catalogue includes renowned authors and novels of genuine literary value that are recognized as such by the French education authorities.
> Sale of rights Nathan is one of the leading French publishers in terms of sale of rights. The bulk of its output is sold abroad. Publishing rights are sold mainly for early childhood works and non-fiction. These sales reflect recognition of the French tradition of creativity as well as the expertise of Nathan, which has an excellent international reputation.
> Nature: exploring and understanding the world For nature lovers, Nathan offers two broad categories of works to help readers learn about and understand nature: field guides and reference books. Its works on astronomy are also highly esteemed; the flagship title in this category, Guillaume Cannat’s Guide du ciel, is published each year in a new edition.
> Nathan International: adapt in order to succeed The international department, which now serves all international markets, publishes country-specific works and textbooks in French, English, Arabic and other languages. From sub-Saharan Africa to the Indian Ocean, from the Arab countries to Asia, in constant contact with ministries of education, teacher training institutes and teachers, this department lives up to its motto: “adapt in order to succeed”.
> MDI: the teachers’ publisher The Maison des Instituteurs has remained true to its initial vocation: providing teachers with ready-to-use teaching tools to assist them in their day-to-day classroom activities. The resources published by MDI can be used with any educational methodology. These resources come in a variety of forms – computer files, books, CD-ROMs, wall maps and friezes, large posters, educational games, etc. – and cover all areas of the curriculum.
Syros is a pioneering publisher of fiction for children and teenagers that has always been willing to blaze new trails. With the “Souris noire” series, it was the first publisher to offer children detective stories written by major authors of whodunits for adults, such as Didier Daeninckx, Marc Villard, Jean-Hugues Oppel... In "Paroles de conteurs", a series written by oral storytellers such as Muriel Bloch, Praline Gay Para, Alain Gaussel and Mimi Barthélémy, the innovation lies in the typography: the printed characters follow the tone and pace of the storyteller’s voice to bring the text as close as possible to the spoken word.
The novels published by Syros are set in real social conditions and address difficult topics that are often avoided in fiction for young people. They also have a civic purpose: introducing the young to other cultures to help preserve them from ethnocentrism. The Syros catalogue reflects this bold, proactive editorial policy, which is highly appreciated by teachers. A number of works are on the French education ministry’s list of recommended reading.
