The pandemic has thrown publishing and booksellers into crisis – and left customers struggling to obtain books when they most want them. But some in the industry sense an opportunity to drag it into the 21st centuryOn 18 March, Emma Corfield-Walters received the news that for the second year running, her shop, Book-ish, in Crickhowell in the Brecon Beacons, had landed the title for Wales in the regional round of the independent bookshop of the year award. Corfield-Walters has run Book-ish for 10 years. It has 16 staff and a cafe, is the base for a literary festival that she also organises, and is credited with having played a major part in the regeneration of Crickhowell’s award-winning high street. Above all, it is a highly successful business: 2019 was a record year. The fact that it would now again be a contender for the overall prize – to be announced in June at the British book awards – was for Corfield-Walters a hard-earned affirmation of a decade’s passion and work.But she was hardly celebrating. Britain was then five days from lockdown. “It was surreal,” she says. “We’d won best bookshop in Wales, yet I wasn’t sure for how much longer I’d have a shop that people could visit. It was like that scene in Star Wars when the walls are moving in, and the room’s getting smaller and smaller. The goalposts were shifting every day. At first, we thought: OK, we’ll buy hand sanitiser! But by the weekend, it was clear the shop would have to close.” Her first thought was for her... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2020-05-10 08:00:20 UTC ]
Michael Kogge’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi (Dean & Son) has ascended into the UK Official Top 50 number one spot, selling 62,104 copies through Nielsen BookScan’s TCM. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2018-04-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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It’s easy to read Michael Moreci’s debut novel “Black Star Renegades” and compare it to “Star Wars.” After all, the story was inspired by that epic saga. But to characterize it as a retelling or a ripoff wouldn’t do justice to this complex, self-aware and fun romp through space. “Black Star... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A year that found four of the 10 companies on the PW Stock Index seeing double-digit stock price increases also saw Barnes & Noble and other big names struggle. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-01-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Children’s novel about a boy trying to break his father out of prison sells more than 60,000 copies in a week to secure top slot in festive book chartsDavid Walliams’s tale of a boy trying to break his father out of prison, Bad Dad, has beaten Jamie Oliver’s latest recipe collection to the top... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2017-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Waterstones is to open five new bookshops before Christmas – with three named after the area they are based in the spirit of an independent bookshop. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-11-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ahead of the theatrical release of ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ on Dec. 15, the founder of the U.K.-based Church of Jediism discusses the challenges and appeal of the Jedi-based faith in his book, ‘Becoming the Force.’ Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Independent bookshop The Book Hive has partnered with a local coffee shop and launched a new weekly "detox reading" event called Page Against the Machine designed to encourage more customers to pick up a book. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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An independent bookshop has opened in Halifax in a 240-year-old cloth trading hall, the city’s first dedicated bookstore for four years. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Star Wars and the Marvel comic book movies will join Disney's upcoming streaming service, potentially giving it broader appeal beyond families with young children. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2017-09-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Rick Owens and his wife Michèle Lamy held court on Tuesday evening on the first floor of the designer’s store in the Palais-Royal in Paris, where they signed copies of “Rick Owens: Furniture,” the coffee table book published by Rizzoli New York. The pair’s banter provided an insight into the... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2017-07-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Matt Forbeck’s Star Wars: Rogue One (Egmont) has knocked Lee Child’s Night School (Bantam) off the UK Official Top 50 number one spot, shifting a stellar 57,949 copies according to Nielsen BookScan’s Total Consumer Market. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-04-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Star Wars, Harry Potter or indeed the almost century-old comic book legends Batman and Superman may have sprung from a rich creative well, but in a stunning twist all of them have been banished to the box office naughty step. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2017-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A record breaking number of submissions has led to the highest ever number of regional shortlisted bookshops at the British Book Awards’ Independent Bookshop of the Year category, sponsored by Gardners Books. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Derek Thompson unravels the mystery of Fifty Shades’ mega-salesThere are no doubt plenty of people - but probably not as many as read the book - who simply can’t fathom how EL James can have sold more than 125m copies of Fifty Shades of Grey. Derek Thompson is here to help. The reason, it... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2017-02-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Another record year for the children’s sector in revenue terms, led by Middle Grade fiction from burgeoning brand David Walliams and dependable diarist Jeff Kinney, underpinned the print market’s continued growth in 2016 . Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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We look at the books that ruled the last week of the holiday shopping season, including Bruce Springsteen’s memoir, a novel that expands the ‘Star Wars: Rogue One’ universe, and a raft of coloring books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-12-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Despite the contentious presidential election, sales at indie bookstores are expected to be up slightly last year, edging out what had been for many a record year in 2015. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-12-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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DK is attending MCM London Comic Con this weekend to showcase its collection of Star Wars, Marvel, DC Comics and LEGO titles - and, as the official sponsor of the Kid Zone, will be offering children the chance to take part in LEGO activities and challenges. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-10-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Describe your role I’m a bookseller at Wenlock Books, an independent bookshop in Shropshire. My job includes running the shop, social media accounts and Children’s Book Club, organising events and meeting with reps. I also keep the website going by writing blog posts and book reviews,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-10-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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