As publishers vie to persuade us to pack their titles for the holidays, we chart the evolution of the ’beach read’Summer reads, beach reads, holiday reads … at this time of year, the publishing world works itself into a sweat trying to force its novels into our carry-on luggage, or over the ether on to our Kindles. There are more books sold in the summer than during any other season: the well-established publishing calendar tends to see hardbacks released in the autumn to be given as gifts at Christmas, then repackaged as paperbacks in late spring. As Donna Harrington-Lueker sets out in her history of the beach read, Books for Idle Hours, the summer publishing rush is at least a century old, and has typically aimed “airy and froth-like” books on “young ladies” (the quote is from an 1888 work on summer books by Arlo Bates). The summer fiction market is changing, though, with more and more “serious”, “literary” novels showing up where once there were only thrillers and crime novels, bonkbusters and romances. So it is that Normal People by Sally Rooney is currently piled high on the tables of WH Smith’s Travel alongside Lee Child, Jodi Picoult and Bernard Cornwell.I’m aware of how contentious and porous discussions of genre can be. Generic labels, though, are the terms that booksellers and publishers think in and for literary novels, the chances of summer success are still relatively slim. Tom Tivnan, managing editor of the Bookseller, points to Nielsen BookScan data that... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2019-07-14 07:00:23 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Wed, 30/03/2011 - 09:36 Eason is pumping 20m into the company over the next three years, at the same time as embarking on trade union talks over a restructure that will likely include some job losses. The Irish bookselling chain announced to staff... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Tue, 29/03/2011 - 08:51 Busy schedules and a strong presence from US publishers in an "upbeat" mood were reported on the first day of the Bologna Book Fair. Hodder Children's Books publishing director Anne McNeil said the fair was busier than it had... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 29/03/2011 - 15:50 Book sales slipped for the fourth week in a row last week, and were down more than £3.3m last year, according to Nielsen BookScan data. A total of £24.2m was spent on printed books at UK retail outlets in the seven days to 26th... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google may seek help from Congress as it tries to salvage a book publishing settlement that was rejected by a federal judge. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2011-03-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amanda Hocking, the 26-year-old author who shot to fame by selling more than a million copies of her self-published books, has signed a deal with St. Martin's Press. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2011-03-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 24/03/2011 - 08:34 Bloomsbury's The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt: the History of a Civilisation from 3,000 BC to Cleopatra has won this year's £3,000 Hessell-Tiltman Prize for History. Written by Toby Wilkinson, the book was commended by... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Katie Allen and Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 23/03/2011 - 15:48 Mainstream, J R Books, Pan and Faber are to rush publication of titles on Elizabeth Taylor, after the Oscar-winning film star died today [23rd March]. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Tue, 22/03/2011 - 19:52 A New York judge has ruled that the revised Google Book Settlement is not "fair, adequate, and reasonable" and has denied final approval. Judge Denny Chin has instead told the parties to redraft the settlement as an "opt-in"... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 22/03/2011 - 15:36 Spending on printed books in the UK slumped for a third consecutive week to a new 2011 low, with this week's number one the lowest-selling top title for more than seven years. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Tue, 22/03/2011 - 16:31 The Japanese earthquake and tsunami has caused the worst disruption to the Japanese book industry since the Second World War, the president of the Japanese Publishers Association has said. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amanda Hocking, the darling of the self-publishing world who has sold more than 900,000 copies of nine books in the last year, has been shopping a four-book series to major publishers. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2011-03-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Barnes & Noble, through its combination of physical bookstores and bn.com, remained the largest outlet for the sale of trade books in 2010. That was one of the first findings from Bowkers annual rollup of its monthly book consumer tracking program, PubTrack Consumer. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-03-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Wed, 16/03/2011 - 14:50 Fiona Goble's 64-page Knit Your Own Royal Wedding (Ivy Press), which comes with a backdrop of Westminster Abbey "so that you can display your creations in authentic surroundings", is the current sales leader in the incredibly... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Barbara Casassus Publication Date: Wed, 16/03/2011 - 09:03 The new-look Paris Book Fair will open on Friday [18th March] for four days as five of the leading French publishers ponder the raids by the European Commission competition officials a fortnight ago. Hachette Livre, Bayard... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 16/03/2011 - 09:04 Hodder thriller imprint Mulholland Books has acquired a fiction debut by "Saw" writers Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, and author, screenwriter and illustrator Stephen Romano. Editor Ruth Tross bought British... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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While librarians are pushing for access to more ebooks to satisfy demand, publishers are reconsidering how much that access should be worth. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2011-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In most parts of Asia, wizardry and fantastical plots have lost much of their magic after dominating the bestseller list for so long. The subsequent vampire and werewolf fever is, by comparison, not as rabidly welcomed in certain territories. As for that wimpy kid, well, his popularity suffers... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-03-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell and Philip Stone Publication Date: Fri, 11/03/2011 - 16:27 Sales of the selected 25 World Book Night titles soared by over 100% at W H Smith, amid a wider trade sales boost, following television coverage, events and book giveaways to mark its inaugural year. On 5th... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publication Date: Wed, 09/03/2011 - 14:40 Faber and Guardian Books have acquired a title by columnist and author Grace Dent about social networking phenomenon Twitter. Guardian Books publisher Lisa Darnell and Faber publishing director for non-fiction Julian Loose jointly acquired world rights... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Tue, 08/03/2011 - 16:00 Online bookseller Book Club Associates (BCA) has been sold to a retail home entertainment supplier. The Webb Group, which supplies retail home entertainment products including games, DVDs, music and gifts, announced the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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