Simon & Schuster senior editor Ben Loehnen was among those injured in Tuesday morning’s random slashings in Riverside Park. Loehnen was stabbed in the stomach while walking his dogs. The NYT says “at first [he] thought he had been punched in the gut, but then saw the blood and realized he had been stabbed.” (The attacker was said to wield part of a pair of scissors). We were told informally by others that Loehnen was recovering following surgery, and in an updated version the NYT confirmed he was “doing well.” Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said that none of the victims faced life-threatening injuries. The attacker is in police custody.
NBC News will air Elizabeth’s Story: A Meredith Vieira Special this Friday, October 4 at 10:00 with Elizabeth Smart, in advance of next week’s release of her memoir MY STORY from St. Martin’s. Smart will appear again live on the Today Show on publication day, October 7.
Canada’s Governor General Awards announced their shortlists today. The finalists for fiction written in English including Booker finalist Eleanor Catton and PL Buzz Books Fall/Winter author Kenneth Bonert:
Kenneth Bonert, The Lion Seeker
Joseph Boyden, The Orenda
Eleanor Catton, The Luminaries
Colin McAdam, A Beautiful Truth
Shyam Selvadurai, The Hungry Ghosts
Scholastic announced a number of new hires and promotions in their trade publishing division and corporate communications department. Nancy Mercado will join Scholastic Press as editorial director on October 14. Previously she was executive editor at Roaring Brook Press. Alexis Lunsford has joined the company as National Accounts Manager, Barnes & Noble/Nook. Most recently, she was account manager for Barnes & Noble at Penguin Young Readers Group. At the Klutz imprint, April Chorba has been promoted to product director, art department, and Eva Steele-Saccio moves up to product director, editorial. Finally, Michael Barrett has been named senior publicist, corporate communications. He was previously a publicist at Discovery.
Sallyanne Sweeney has joined Mulcahy Associates, bringing her clients from Watson, Little, where she has worked since 2007. The agency has appointed Samar Hammam at Rocking Chair Books to represent their translation rights across most of continental Europe.
Last Friday night, Philip Roth was honored in New York with France’s Legion of Honor. At the same event, France’s foreign minister set the ceremonial first brick for a planned two-story French bookstore in the country’s embassy building on Fifth Avenue.
Peter Hildick-Smith has joined the advisory board of start-up Riffle Books.