A prize a day keeps the blues away. This time last year Alex Ross’s THE REST IS NOISE was making multiple Top 10 lists in the US and now it is the “the clear and undisputed winner” of the Guardian First Book Prize in the UK. Guardian literary editor Claire Armitstead, said: “In some quarters this book has been seen as not having a popular appeal. Our prize – which, uniquely, relies on readers’ groups in the early stages of judging – proves that, on the contrary, there is a huge appetite among readers for clear, serious but accessible books.”Guardian
Archives for December 2008
The Next Domino: Layoffs at S&S
Simon & Schuster has “enacted a reduction in staff in which 35 positions across the company were eliminated, from areas including our publishing divisions and international, operations and sales,” according to a memo from ceo Carolyn Reidy. Despite having “literally examined our budget line-by-line to find those areas large and small where we might further economize,” Reidy says “today’s action is an unavoidable acknowledgment of the current bookselling marketplace and what may very well be a prolonged period of economic instability. In light of this uncertainty, we must responsibly position ourselves for challenges both near term and long.”
Richter to Leave S&S; The Other Applebaum Stays
Simon & Schuster Children’s president Rick Richter has resigned “to explore other opportunities in publishing,” leaving December 5. He has run the unit since 2003, and has been with Simon & Schuster since 1996 (when he also ran the children’s unit before switching over to sales and distribution). CEO Carolyn Reidy notes that “under his leadership, Children’s division revenues have nearly doubled, and the division has grown to become an industry-leading full-service publishing enterprise.” She underscores that “children’s publishing remains an important and vital part of Simon & Schuster’s overall publishing portfolio” and indicateDennis Eulau will “work with the children’s […]
Dismantling of HMH Continues with Firings
Galleycat reports that Ann Patty says she has been “fired” along with “a lot” of other employees at Harcourt Houghton Mifflin, adding to the community’s sense that the parent company has simply given up on the trade line. Place your takeover bids now.
Random Drops the Next Shoe: Rubin and Applebaum Stepping Down in Reorg
The Random House reorganization everyone has been expecting under new ceo Markus Dohle was announced this morning. President and publisher of the Bantam Dell group Irwyn Applebaum is leaving the company immediately after 25 years there. Dohle calls him “one of the most successful publishers in our industry. He is widely regarded as a champion of great storytelling, with marketing acumen to match.” The publishing line itself is being absorbed by the Random House group, under Gina Centrello, along with the Spiegel & Grau unit that had been part of Doubleday. It puts the company’s two big mass-market lines together […]
Layoffs at Nelson
Thomas Nelson ceo Michael Hyatt announced layoffs at the company today via his active Twitter feed and then wrote further on his blog. “Today, was a very difficult day at Thomas Nelson. We informed fifty-four of our friends and co-workers (about 10% of our workforce) that we have eliminated their jobs, effective this Friday. This will affect nearly every department in our company.” In April, the company eliminated “about 60” positions “because we have changed our business strategy.” But “this second round was purely a result of the slowdown in the economy,” Hyatt now writes. He admits, “As recently as […]