More About Us
	The History of CGP
		CGP was founded in 1864 by Jedediah Coordination (right with family) who, shocked by the poverty of the school books he had seen in the streets and slums of Old London Town, moved to the Lake District determined to find a new way to produce entertaining study books at affordable prices. As a tribute to Jedediah, we’d like to share this brief outline of his life and career in the hope that it will encourage you to attempt great achievements like his. We hope that you too will find him an inspirational example of how to make your dreams come true. (Not nightmares, obviously. Nice dreams.)
	A Marvellous and Ingenious Idea
		During his school years in London, Jedediah had seen many talented, intelligent students failing their exams through the terrible dullness of their textbooks, which were all in sepia as you can see in photographs from the times. Jedediah became convinced that the only way students could survive the sheer boredom of Victorian exam revision was by writing clear, concise books that were full of chatty language and plenty of colour, with a good splash of terrible jokes to keep the reader awake. However, when Jedediah published his ideas in his famous pamphlet “On the Origin of Good Exam Grades”, his views were attacked by many traditionalists such as the well-known dull novelist Anthony Trollope, who wrote, “The textbook, like the Victorian novel, of which I am a great exponent, should be filled, like this, with many sub-clauses, like this – and this too – which make the sentences incredibly long, boring and very hard to follow, a bit like me. Did you know I invented the post box?” Shocked by the reaction to his ideas, Jedediah decided to move to the Lakes where he hoped to enlist top poet William Wordsworth to help him write the new style of books he was determined to create. Unfortunately Wordsworth had died in 1850, and so was unable to help. So Jedediah wrote his first book himself.
	CGP - the Early Years
		The book was an instant smash and Jedediah found himself a wealthy man, as “On Repealing the Corn Laws; The Revision Guide” by Jedediah Coordination broke all sales records for an educational book, beating Mrs Miggins’ famous sewage management study book the “Let’s Suck Cess” Guide into a cocked hat. Whatever that means. Thanks to great sales, Jedediah was able to take on 2 new staff members — a secretary, Miss Elopecia Group, and a chicken, Errol, who provided eggs for dinner every day. From these humble beginnings, the company continued to grow as Jedediah dictated his books to Miss Group, who typed them, speeding up the publication process. Inevitably, working closely together in a small room in the Lake District where it rains for 9 months of the year, Miss Group and Jedediah soon became engaged. After they married in 1868, they renamed the growing company Coordination Group Publications, known to the world today as CGP. At the same time Errol was appointed as the first Head of Sales & Marketing.
	CGP books – Popular and Affordable
		People quickly cottoned on to how much better the world was thanks to CGP books. Suddenly education had been opened up to the masses as these books were genuinely affordable. As a result, they flew off the shelves like hot cakes (but less dangerous if they hit you in the eye). CGP’s commitment to keeping sensible prices and offering decent discounts whenever possible continues to this day.
	CGP – still the best
		Just like Great Grandpappy Jed, we work hard to make sure our books give clear, accurate, concise and carefully written details on every subject we cover. We’re still based in the Lake District because it’s nice and because it means we can create a whole lot of jobs for folks up here, while hanging on to our traditions of friendly, efficient service and entertaining but useful books. We continue to keep our books as clear as we can, and we always stick in plenty of jokes and jolly pictures to make revising a bit less painful. That’s why generations of kids, parents and teachers have grown up loving CGP books. But don’t just take our word for it, take a look at some of the comments in our site guestbook. And have a read of one of our books for yourself…