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Tributes have been paid to “tireless” book promoter and editor Jennifer Creswick, who has died aged 72.
Creswick died on 3rd July in Ascot. Although never confirmed owing to lockdown restrictions, she was believed to have been suffering from Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP).
Her funeral will be held on Thursday (22nd July), and while attendance will be restricted owing to Covid-19, it will be available via a webcast from 10.55 a.m.
Creswick's cousin Judy Botherway told The Bookseller: “Jenny spent all of her working life with books, starting out as publicity manager at the Athlone (University of London) Press after she graduated from King’s College, London.
“Her next job was with the British Council, where she worked tirelessly to promote British books and organised its stands at the major book fairs such as Frankfurt and Cairo.
"Upon taking redundancy from the council, Jenny became a freelance editor and worked for several publishing houses and of course, The Bookseller. She had an eagle eye for typos and poor grammar. It is a great tragedy that her very cruel disease deprived Jenny of the joy of reading at the end of her life."
Vivienne Menkes-Ivry, a friend and former associate of Creswick's, also paid tribute. “At the British Council Jennifer was the editor of British Book News (BBN) until its closure in 1993, which included publishing long profiles of individual publishing houses,” she told The Bookseller. “This exposure of British publishing to a worldwide audience was complemented by her work setting up and running the British Council stand at the Frankfurt Book Fair — she spoke good German — which was an important showcase for the work of British publishers.
“After BBN closed she worked with Tony Read at International Book Development, which he had set up in 1990 after leaving his role as director of the international division of the Book Development Council at the Publishers Association. She also freelanced regularly for The Bookseller and worked on The Bookseller's Buyer’s Guides.”
For more information on the funeral, visit https://jennifercreswick.muchloved.com.
Donations may be made to The Book Trade Charity at BTBS, The Foyle Centre, The Retreat, King's Langley, Herts WD4 8LT.