A heart-warming love letter to books and bookshops, by an amenable fellow turned antisocial old misanthrope“I was in here two years ago and you had a book by Roger Penrose. Do you know what happened to it?” Shaun Bythell – owner of the Book Shop in Wigtown, Galloway – has 100,000 books in stock, sells 20,000 a year, and has handled nearly 1m second-hand books since he bought the shop in 2001. Unsurprisingly, the Roger Penrose volume had not stuck in his mind.Before he entered the book trade at the tender age of 31, he was “amenable and friendly”. Now, after many years of fielding bizarre questions, constant haggling over prices (why is it “acceptable to try to screw the profit out of struggling small businesses” but not supermarkets?), and struggling to survive despite Amazon’s “icy grip” on bookselling, he has been forced to embrace the stereotype of the “impatient, intolerant, antisocial proprietor”. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2019-08-24 10:58:38 UTC ]
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There were too many worthy books, but I had too little time — and, alas, too many excuses. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2021-12-28 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Organisers of a crowdfunder for the White Review have stretched the target by an additional £6,000 after sailing past their original £10,000 goal. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-23 08:46:01 UTC ]
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Lightning Books has snapped up the "thrilling" sequel to Adam Macqueen's Polari-longlisted Beneath the Streets. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-23 08:20:15 UTC ]
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Booksellers Association managing director Meryl Halls says she is "enormously proud" of what booksellers have achieved this year but has raised concerns about "another unsettling stretch" with the emergence of the Omicron variant of Covid-19, concerns about inflation and continued issues with... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-23 04:11:09 UTC ]
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The Bookseller is inviting independent bookshops across the UK and Ireland to complete its annual Christmas trading survey. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-20 17:57:32 UTC ]
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Four in 10 of this year’s list of the book trade’s big cheeses are either new entries or 2021 first-timers, reflecting how the pandemic has reshaped publishing leadership. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-17 00:28:55 UTC ]
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Lume Books has snapped up the follow up to Nancy Bilyeau's historical thriller The Blue. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-17 00:09:57 UTC ]
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Juhea Kim's "Beasts of a Little Land" captures the dualities of Korean history but ties up symbols too tightly in the service of grand ambitions. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2021-12-14 15:00:20 UTC ]
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Sphere has snapped-up an audio-only comedic annual review by James Felton, narrated by Russell Kane, marking a first for the publisher. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-09 10:58:58 UTC ]
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The White Review has launched a £10,000 crowdfunding appeal to safeguard its future after two "very hard" years for the literary and culture magazine. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-06 08:27:57 UTC ]
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Zenith Bookstore sells both new and used books, and has become a community hub in a part of the city where residents never expected to have a bookstore. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-12-03 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Streaming audiobook brand sent invites to all major media holdings companies to field interest in managing its ads. Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2021-12-02 14:44:34 UTC ]
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David Walliams and Tony Ross' Gangsta Granny Strikes Again! (HarperCollins Children's Books) has swiped the UK Official Top 50 number one spot for a second week, selling 54,528 copies in its first full week on the shelves. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-01 01:13:04 UTC ]
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What launched as a sort of support group in the early days of Covid-19, Friends & Fiction celebrated its 100th episode on November 24. PW caught up with show's creators and hosts, Mary Kay Andrews, Kristin Harmel, Kristy Woodson Harvey, and Patti Callahan Henry, to talk about the remarkable... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-11-30 05:00:00 UTC ]
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A petition was filed this week by the Knight First Amendment Institute and the ACLU on behalf of five former government employees, who claim their First Amendment rights are being unreasonably stifled by an expansive and non-transparent review process. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-11-23 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Our Children’s Starred Reviews Annual features more than 350 reviews of exceptional books for young readers, a selection of interviews with some of today’s top authors and illustrators, our 50 Best Books of 2021, and a cover by Ruth Chan. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-11-22 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Bad Form Review and Penguin Random House's Lit in Colour scheme have jointly won the Discover award at this year's FutureBook Awards ceremony. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-11-19 17:09:55 UTC ]
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In her essay collection “These Precious Days,” the novelist and bookstore owner explores friendship, marriage and mortality. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-11-19 15:41:34 UTC ]
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The pandemic, coupled with the protests that followed George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis last year, has transformed the Twin Cities bookselling scene in the last 20 months. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-11-19 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Ongoing global supply issues and a paper shortage have conspired to create the "perfect storm" for the book industry as publishers, booksellers and authors are all finding it difficult to keep up with reader demand. Continue reading at CBC
[ CBC | 2021-11-17 09:00:00 UTC ]
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