Q & A with K.L. Going

Children's Bookshelf spoke with K.L. Going about her new novel, King of the Screwups (Harcourt).

Huzzahs for Humphrey

It’s not unusual for rodent characters to make it big in the world of children’s books. Currently, a humble hamster named Humphrey is riding his yellow hamster ball to popularity as star of a series of books by Betty G. Birney.

Harper Closing Collins; Other Layoffs Planned

HarperCollins announced this morning that it is closing its Collins division and integrating its operations within different businesses in the General Books Group. As a result, Steve Ross, president and publisher of Collins, and Lisa Gallagher, senior v-p, and publisher of William Morrow, are leaving the company. In addition to closing Collins, CEO Brian Murray issued a memo today saying that despite efforts to avoid layoffs, a reduction in the workforce will be necessary.

Armstrong, Harwood Among Those Leaving in Borders Consolidation

Borders has consolidated its corporate management team, a move that resulted in the elimination of the executive v-p of U.S. stores and CIO positions held by Ken Armstrong and Susan Harwood, respectively. Fourteen other positions at the v-p and director level were eliminated as well.

Reader’s Digest Cuts 280 Positions

Reader's Digest has eliminated 8% of its workforce due to a decline in consumer spending and ad revenue.

Schaffner Press: Publishing as Improvisation

Tim Schaffner's hobby, jazz drumming, put him on a roundabout path to independent publishing. “I got involved with Artt Frank. He played with Chet Baker and has been my teacher and mentor,” said Schaffner. “We put together a book for jazz drummers—Essentials for the Be Bop Drummer [by Artt Frank and Pete Swan, 2005].

Scholastic Rolls Out Carman’s Multimedia Venture

Skeleton Creek -- conceived, written and produced by Patrick Carman, author of the Land of Elyon, Atherton and Elliot’s Park series -- is a new ghost mystery from Scholastic that plays out on the page and in online video footage.

Amazon Launches Author Stores

Amazon has added a new way of finding books to its site, which the company is calling Author Stores, single pages that feature all books from a particular author, plus, in many cases, an author photo and some related content, such as a biography, message board and streaming video.

Advancing the Cause

In today's climate, surviving is heroic in itself. But several figures and one bold initiative stand out as deserving of special praise for addressing current conditions with creative, dynamic and successful strategies. David Shanks Leads the Penguin Team When David Shanks took over the reins of Penguin Group USA from Phyllis Grann in 2001, his colleagues at competing companies included Jane ...

Emotional Content and Bio-Manga

While working at a large magazine company in Japan, Eiji Han Shimizu had a vision to use Japanese comics, or manga, to change the world. The general concept was well received at his company, but his vision was not considered commercially viable. Despite this, Shimizu began culling a network of manga artists and creators, and formulating ideas for a new kind of informational/inspirational manga.

Hornik Named President and Publisher of Dial and Dutton

Lauri Hornik, president and publisher of Dial Books, has been appointed president and publisher of Dial Books and Dutton Children’s Books.

Emotional Content and Bio-Manga

While working at a large magazine company in Japan, Eiji Han Shimizu had a vision to use Japanese comics, or manga, to change the world. The general concept was well received at his company, but his vision was not considered commercially viable. Despite this, Shimizu began culling a network of manga artists and creators, and formulating ideas for a new kind of informational/inspirational manga.

92nd Street Y Celebrates 70 Years

To fans of poetry and literary prose, mentioning New York City's 92nd Street Y evokes not merely a gym and community center, but also one of the premier venues in the country for literary readings and events, run under the auspices of the Y's Unterberg Poetry Center. This year, the Poetry Center is celebrating its 70th anniversary with a season of readings featuring such big names as T.

Disney Halloween Promotion 2010

Joshua Beckman and Matthew Zapruder

Joshua Beckman, 36, and Matthew Zapruder, 40, met in 1998 when Beckman passed through Amherst, Mass., on a tour for his debut poetry collection, Things Are Happening. Zapruder was an M.F.A. student at the University of Amherst and went to see Beckman's reading: “I was blown away,” says Zapruder.

B&N Confronts Changing Market, Bad Environment

The book business is “holding up” in an extremely difficult macro economic environment, but that doesn't mean the industry hasn't changed, Barnes & Noble CFO Joseph Lombardi told analysts in a presentation made at Goldman Sachs's global retailing conference last week. The 13.9% increase posted by Barnes & Noble.

Running Rain Taxi

In the world of book reviews, Minneapolis-based Rain Taxi Review of Books is something of an anomaly. It comes out quarterly in print and in online editions with different content, and is one part of a nonprofit organization that also hosts the Twin Cities Book Festival; it also sponsors readings and publishes chapbooks of fiction and poetry.

Brent Cunningham

Brent Cunningham didn't plan on becoming operations director of Small Press Distribution (SPD), the 40-year-old, San Francisco—based nonprofit distributor of more than 500 of America's best small, tiny and micro publishers. Like many people involved with small press publishing, Cunningham, who will turn 40 in a few months, found his way into the industry in a wayward fashion.

U.S. Drives Penguin in First Half of 2008

An "exceptional" performance by Penguin Group USA helped to push up results at Penguin worldwide.

Tough Times to Get Ahead

The slumbering national economy is reflected in both the salary gains and the attitudes of those in the publishing industry, PW's annual salary survey found. In 2007, the average raise was 4.2%, above the rate of inflation but still the smallest increase in more than five years (see. p. 26). Bonuses were also lower in 2007 than in 2006, with those in management feeling the belt-tightening most ...