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LBF vs. the Volcano: Fair Planners Say Show Will Go On
With London's Heathrow airport closed for a second day as a result of volcanic ash being spit into European air space by an erupting volcano in Iceland, those in the publishing community are dealing with delayed flights and mounting concerns about how, and if, they will be able to get to the fair.
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London Book Fair -- Missed Connections
Have you had to change your travel plans for the London Book Fair? Click through for details on attendees' updated schedules. And please contact Jim Milliot at jmilliot@reedbusiness.com, if you would like send along your information.
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Bologna Gets Back to Business
After a 2009 fair when many Americans stayed home over economic worries, the 2010 Bologna Children's Book Fair proved a much more upbeat gathering. "There's a lot of activity, and everyone I'm talking to seems positive," said Andrew Smith, deputy publisher of Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. HarperCollins children's rights director Helen Boomer said it was "great to see many of the publishers who skipped last year return this year." And Penguin Young Readers associate publisher Jennifer Haller reported, "People are chatting about what the year's going to hold. There are a lot of really good conversations."
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Jewish Group Boycotts Canadian Kids' Book
For the second time in four years, a Jewish group is calling for the removal of a title published by Canadian house Groundwood Books from recommended-reading lists at schools and libraries. Anne Laurel Carter's novel The Shepherd's Granddaughter tells the story of Amani, a Palestinian girl who wants to be a shepherd. Her flock and family are threatened by encroaching Jewish settlements. This last plot point does not sit well with Jewish advocacy group B'Nai Brith. The organization issued a statement calling the book "anti-Israeli propaganda" and "a one-sided work of fiction which demonizes the Jewish State."
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Fiction Hot, Digital Not at Upbeat Bologna
The mood at this year's Bologna Book Fair has been much improved over last year when publishers were dealing with the impact of the worldwide recession. Young adult titles and series are drawing the most attention, but there remains caution about what to do on the digital front. "There's a lot of activity and everyone's very upbeat. Last year this place was dead," said Stephen Roxburgh, now with his new company namelos. "But I walked in yesterday morning and you could feel the energy." Roxburgh, who says he's on a one-man hunt to find a "digital pulse" at the fair, reports that the fair's overwhelming focus continues to be "ink on paper," but says he's finding people more receptive to the digital idea.
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David Almond, Jutta Bauer Win Hans Christian Andersen Awards
The 2010 Hans Christian Andersen Award, the most prestigious international award for children's books, has been given to British author David Almond and German illustrator Jutta Bauer. The award was announced Tuesday afternoon at the Bologna Book Fair.
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London Briefcase: What the Big Six Are Bringing to the Fair
Glenn Beck rants about conspiracy theories (this time in fiction), Steve Martin explores the art world, Gary Shteyngart gets romantic, Jimmy Carter unlocks his diary, Laura Bush unlocks her life, and Drs. Oz and Roizen tackle parenting. These are just a few of the highlights you'll find among the books the “big six” are selling at the 2010 London Book Fair.
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On to Bologna!
As children's publishers from the world over convene in Italy later this month (March 23—26), a number of issues hang in the balance. How will the economy shape this year's fair? Is the age of the big YA fantasy trilogy finally over? Will picture books make a resurgence? What of the co-edition market? The digital revolution? We asked a sampling of Bologna veterans for their take on what to expect at this year's fair, and what they're looking for.
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Canadian Market Up Slightly in 2009
The Canadian book market remained relatively healthy throughout the economic turbulence of 2009 with sales up 4% in dollars and 1% units sold over 2008 figures, according to a report released by BookNet Canada.
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Canadian Writers Air Google Book Search Gripes
A group of about 175 Canadian writers registered their objections to the Google Book Search settlement last week just before the Jan. 28 deadline for submissions to a New York court.
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Job Moves
Simon & Schuster Australia has promoted Lou Johnson to managing director. Johnson has been with the company since July 2008 as sales and marketing director.
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Canada's Independent Booksellers Satisfied with Holidays
Though the bankruptcy of McNally-Robinson Booksellers grabbed lots of attention earlier this month, many of Canada's independent booksellers said sales held up over the holidays.
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'Alchemist' and Other Coelho Titles Available in Portuguese on Kindle
Worldwide bestselling author Paulo Coelho is making 17 of his books, including The Alchemist, available in his native Portuguese exclusively for worldwide distribution in Amazon’s Kindle store. It will be the first time any of the editions have been available as e-books, and they will be exclusive to the Kindle store for six months.
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Actar Acquires Birkhäuser Architecture Titles
Actar, the publisher of books on architecture, graphic design, and contemporary art with offices in Barcelona and New York, has signed an agreement with Springer Science + Business Media to acquire the sales and distribution of titles from Birkhäuser Verlag in Basel, Switzerland. Birkhäuser will become an imprint of Actar but will remain in Basel.
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Cooking the Books with Clotilde Dusoulier
Clotilde Dusoulier talks about her translation and adaption of the French classic I Know How to Cook, first published in 1932, with more than six million copies in print in France. As holiday shoppers snap up the just-out DVD of Julie & Julia, Dusoulier discusses I Know How to Cook versus Mastering the Art of French Cooking.
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Paris Court Convicts Google in Copyright Infringement Case
The AP reported this morning that a Paris court has convicted Google in a copyright infringement case over online publication of French books.
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South Korea Takes on the E-book
Just two days after returning to New York from the Middle East, we headed to Seoul, South Korea, as part of an American delegation to the annual Paju Book City Forum, along with Simon & Schuster CEO Carolyn Reidy and University of Hawaii “futurist” James Dator. The topic of this year's forum: publishing in the digital world.
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Fertile Ground: The United Arab Emirates
On a recent visit to the U.A.E. for the Sharjah International Book Fair PW found something remarkable: a publishing industry full of optimism—and on the upswing.
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BEA 2010 Global Market Forum to Focus on Spain
Spain will be the focus of BookExpo 2010’s Global Market Forum, conference organizers announced today.
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Headline's New Strategy Results in New Hires, Promotions and Layoffs
Headline Publishing Group is making some major changes resulting in new hires, promotions and layoffs, Hachette UK CEO Tim Hely Hutchinson announced. The company will be publishing less nonfiction and uniting its marketing, digital and design departments.
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