The centenary of George Barker’s birth was mentioned in the Times Literary Supplement recently. His ‘first two books — one of verse, the other prose — were released in 1933’. Released? Isn’t that what happens to films and Engelbert Humperdinck?
Released suddenly seems to have replaced published. Certainly Amazon is reinforcing the trend, because if you order a book that has not yet been published, a message pops up with the date on which ‘this item will be released’. Until then it is available ‘for pre-order’ or, as we used to say ‘to order’.
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I’ve even seen reference recently to Pride and Prejudice being released 200 years ago, even though it was advertised in the Morning Chronicle of 28 January 1813 as being ‘published this day’. Publish is much older than I suspected, being used by Wycliffe’s friends in the 14th century to refer to books that Eusebius and Pamphilius pupplescheden.
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