Book publisher leaves her job

Becky Saletan, the senior vice president and publisher of adult trade books at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, has quit.

Spokesman Josef Blumenfeld confirmed Tuesday that Saletan had resigned, but declined further comment. Saletan couldn’t be reached for comment.

Saletan had served in the job since January 2008, when she was appointed to head the newly merged Harcourt and Houghton Mifflin divisions.

The company has been in the news for an alleged hold-down on new books. Blumenfeld has offered conflicting statements, saying the publisher of authors such as Philip Roth and Gunter Grass had “temporarily stopped acquiring manuscripts.” But he didn’t dispute reports that the policy didn’t apply to education and children’s books and a mystery book imprint.