Simon & Schuster has appointed Jonathan Karp, the author of Edward M. Kennedy's "True Compass”, who will be replacing David Rosenthal. Karp had been working with wide range of workers over the last 13 years.

Like Rosenthal, Karp has a good record of acquiring best sellers like Laura Hillebrand's "Seabiscuit" for Random House and Kennedy's "True Compass" for twelve. He found the imprint at the Hachette Book Group in 2005.

Simon & Schuster has been publishing brand-name historians like David McCullough and Doris Kearns Goodwin, as well as fiction writers Mary Higgins Clark and Sandra Brown. However, it has been facing a tough time since last 2-3 years. It undertook a number of layoffs in 2008 and 2009. In the first quarter of 2010, its sales dropped by 6.2%, to $151.7 million.

"Sometimes a change is just needed because the world has changed and a fresh approach might help reinvigorate an imprint," Simon & Schuster CEO Carolyn Reidy.

He further said that David had been working there since the last 13 years, performing reasonably well.

Rosenthal, an old colleague of Karp's at Random House, some random things happen in life and leave the person directionless.