Could lockdown herald an exciting new chapter for the book trade?

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 ]
News tagged with: #year running #major part #record year #star wars #huge relief #signed copies #bookshop #british book #literary festival #independent bookshop

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PW's Top Book Reviews of 2014

Here are the reviews of adult titles that were read the most on publishersweekly.com this year—an intriguing mix of backlist titles and contemporary hits. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-12-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #adult titles #backlist titles


Post-Christmas discounts from the trade

Bestselling titles including the Christmas number one Guinness World Records 2015 (GWR), as well as Jessie Burton’s The Miniaturist (Picador) and Robert Galbraith’s The Silkworm (Little, Brown) are being sold at a discount of up to 85% by retailers online, while The Book People is offering some... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #selling titles #christmas number #jessie burton #miniaturist picador #robert galbraith #book people


Book Aid doubles shipments in 2014

Book Aid International sent more than a million books to African libraries in 2014, almost doubling their distribution figures for 2013.   The charity, which works in partnership with library services in Africa to distribute new books and learning resources, celebrated its 60th anniversary... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #million books #library services #learning resources #60th anniversary #african countries


The novelist’s art of the tweet is brought to book

It’s a long way from inception to completion, unless you’re artist and programmer Cory Arcangel, and your book is made up of other people’s tweets about writing a bookThe Inception Button should be used sparingly but when called for, it can be highly effective. Located at inception.davepedu.com,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-12-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #christopher nolan #edith piaf #penguin books


5 good books I fear I may never read

It's sobering to think of carrying on into next year the weight of all the unread books on one's nightstand. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-12-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #unread books


Bestselling books 2014: the kids are all right

Books for children and young adults are top of the league, bagging seven of this year’s top 10, but non-fiction has endured another annus horribilisSee the chart in fullAt long last, kids ruled in 2014. Books aimed at them have often figured in the top 10 of the all-year sales chart for printed... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-12-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #jk rowling #elite group #dan brown #el james #john green #david walliams #jeff kinney


The Best Books Fast Company Read This Year

Relive the year in reading with the Fast Company staff.As the year wraps up, the Fast Company staff remembers our year in reading with our favorite books of the year. The list above is by no means comprehensive, or even the best new titles, but just some of the works we spent the last 12 months... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2014-12-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bestselling books of 2014: did the booksellers get it right?

What effect did Super Thursday have on book sales, and how well did eight leading retailers and pundits fare in predicting the top titles of the year?• Readers turn over a new leaf as celebrity sales stutter• ‘Amazon-free’ Christmas campaign diverts reported £5m worth of sales from online... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-12-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #top titles #readers turn #black friday #cyber monday #christmas market


A Time-Traveling Graphic Novel and More Great Books We’re Reading This Month

It's like the phrase "curl up with a good book" was invented for the month of December. Here's what we're reading by the fire. The post A Time-Traveling Graphic Novel and More Great Books We’re Reading This Month appeared first on WIRED. Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2014-12-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #month appeared #great books #good book


E-books can pose health risks

Using tablets and backlit e-readers at night can lead to sleep deficiency and damage health, an academic study has claimed. According to findings published in the US journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, blue light, the wavelength common in smartphones, tablets and LED... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #academic study #national academy


The Miniaturist is Specsavers Book of the Year

Jessie Burton's The Miniaturist (Pan Macmillan) has been crowned the Specsavers Book of the Year for 2014 after a public vote. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #jessie burton #public vote


Publishing Sales Execs Consider the Future of Book Pricing

A trio of international publishing sales executives reflect on the different attitudes toward book pricing across the world, wondering what the future holds. The post Publishing Sales Execs Consider the Future of Book Pricing appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-12-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #future holds


The Miniaturist voted book of the year

Jessie Burton's debut novel The Miniaturist comes top of a public vote to be named Specsavers Book of the Year. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2014-12-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #jessie burton #public vote


On French and German Attitudes to Book Prices

The French and German attitudes toward book prices originate in their long-standing cultural view on the importance of books as a bastion of culture. The post On French and German Attitudes to Book Prices appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-12-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book prices


New Books Rule In November

David Foenkinos’s "Charlotte," the story of a German painter who died at Auschwitz at the age of 26, rose six spots to hit #1 on France’s fiction list in November. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #hit #1 #fiction list


Book Review: What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions

Here is a book review of Randall Munroe's What If? Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Questions. Overall, a great book. I recommend it. The post Book Review: What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions appeared first on WIRED. Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2014-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book review #scientific answers #randall munroe #great book


Open Letter Book’s Chad Post on the State of Translation

Three Percent and Open Letter Books publisher Chad Post talks with Caitlyn Christensen at Sampsonia Way about the contemporary literary scene, publishing and translation. The post Open Letter Book’s Chad Post on the State of Translation appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #translation appeared #chad post


Book Clubs Boost Scholastic in Q2

Led by a 14% increase in its children’s book publishing and distribution business, revenue at Scholastic rose 7% in the second quarter ended November 30, 2014 compared to the same period last year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-12-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #14% increase #book publishing #distribution business


Blinkist Condenses Nonfiction Books to 15-Minute Audiobooks

Berlin-based Blinkist condenses nonfiction books down to key points called blinks and is offering an app that delivers books as 15-minute audio summaries. The post Blinkist Condenses Nonfiction Books to 15-Minute Audiobooks appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-12-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Harris to chair Costa Book of the Year judges

Author Robert Harris will chair the judging panel for the 2014 Costa Book of the Year. He will be joined by writers Maggie O’Farrell, Bernadine Evaristo, Jonathan Stroud, Owen Sheers and Wendy Moore, actress Dame Diana Rigg, the BBC’s economics editor Robert Peston, and actress Samantha... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #jonathan stroud #owen sheers #costa book #category winners