Legendary Editor and Penguin Press Founder Ann Godoff Dies at 76

Publisher and editor Ann Godoff, founder of Penguin Press and champion of bestselling, award-winning books, has died at 76, leaving a lasting impact on modern publishing.

on Feb 27, 2026

Legendary Editor and Penguin Press Founder Ann Godoff Dies at 76

Ann Godoff, a distinguished editor of books and co-founder of Penguin Press, died on February 24, 2026, at the age of 76 after complications from being diagnosed with bone cancer in Albany, New York.

Over the last 40 years, she was one of the leading forces in American publishing through the creation of both literary and commercial books. She started as a rookie editor for Simon & Schuster and, later, was an executive at Random House and then an executive at Penguin Press until she passed away.

She is considered a gifted editor with many successful and critically successful books released throughout her career, which includes historical fiction, memoirs, non-fiction, and fiction by authors such as John Berendt (Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil), Caleb Carr (The Alienist), Arundhati Roy (The God of Small Things), Ron Chernow, Michael Pollan, Zadie Smith, and, so many more.

The first list she created while president of Penguin Press included Ghost Wars, which was a Pulitzer Prize winner, and books that sold millions of copies. Godoff trained young editors for many years, as well as established lasting relationships with authors.

Ann is survived by her partner Annik LaFarge, and her brother Peter Godoff and his family.