Dutton Children’s vp, publisher Julie Strauss-Gabel has been promoted to president and publisher of the imprint, reporting to Jen Loja, who said in the announcement: “Julie does not only publish books, she publishes authors, and for that we are immensely grateful. She brings important voices and stories to readers each and every day, and she continues to grow Dutton into a house with not only a terrific legacy, but also a spectacular future. I know I speak for the entire Penguin Young Readers group when I say we are very galvanized to accomplish this alongside her.”
Denise Oswald will move over to Ecco as executive editor, specializing in nonfiction, on January 11. Previously she spent the past five years as executive editor at Dey Street Books and before then, was editorial director at Soft Skull.
At Farrar, Straus, Amanda Moon has been promoted to director of the Scientific American book imprint. In addition, Daniel Del Valle has been promoted to marketing director, digital strategy and technology, and John Knight moves up to associate editor.
At Little, Brown, Nicole Dewey has been promoted to vp, associate publisher, reporting to Craig Young. In her new role, Dewey will continue to manage the imprint’s publicity department while also overseeing social media and enhancing the division’s brand through public relations efforts. Meghan Deans, assistant director of social media, will now report to Dewey.
Michelle Aielli has been promoted to associate publisher at Hachette Books, continuing to report to Mauro DiPreta. In addition, Betsy Hulsebosch has taken on the expanded role of marketing director for both Hachette Books and Black Dog & Leventhal. Hulsebosch, along with Kara Thornton, Emily Caldwell, and an as-yet unfilled publicity/marketing manager will report to Aielli.
At Blue Rider Press/Plume, Sarah Hochman has been promoted to editor in chief. Becky Cole moves up to executive editor for Plume, and Kate Napolitano has been promoted to senior editor for that line. And Nina Shield, will join Plume this month as editor/backlist manager. She has been at Ballantine.
Kent Wolf has joined The Friedrich Agency as agent and foreign rights director. He was previously at Lippincott Massie McQuilkin.
At Random House Children’s Books, Mary Man-Kong has been promoted to executive editor, Random House Books for Young Readers/Golden Books group.
At Knopf Children’s, Kelly Delaney has been promoted to associate editor.
At Henry Holt, Carolyn O’Keefe has been promoted to deputy director of publicity. In addition, Leslie Brandon moves up to senior publicity manager, and Rachel Selvin has been promoted to associate publicist.
At Macmillan Children’s group, Caitlin Sweeny has been promoted to senior digital marketing manager and Johanna Kirby has been promoted to associate marketing manager.
Jane Manning Hyatt has joined Chronicle books as executive director of sales. Previously she was vp, higher education at Teachscape. In addition, Lisa Ferkel has joined as junior designer in Marcom.
JD Wilson will join Northwestern University Press as director of marketing and sales on January 19. Previously he was sales and marketing director at University of Alabama Press.
Corporate
Atlas-Contact Publishers in Holland acquired Meridiaan Publishers, as of January 1. Publisher Nelleke Geel and editor Huguette Hornstra have joined Atlas Contact. Ceo of Overamstel Publishers Martijn Griffioen says in the announcement: “The sale of Meridiaan Publishers was not planned, but with the expansion of Hollands Diep, Lebowski, The House of Books and with the addition of the new imprint Derksen, Van Egmond & Derksen, we’re pleased with the opportunity that Atlas Contact has provided for the further growth of Meridiaan and its authors.”
Retiring
Penguin announced on social media that the Penguin Book Truck is retiring after 3 years of service and “a fantastic run” around the country. Spokesperson Lily Rudd told us that “running a pop-up-shop on the road is a lot of work, which had been handled on a nights-and-weekends basis by some very dedicated marketers and sales reps. We love the Truck, but in the end we felt we needed to focus our efforts in more scalable ways. So, the Truck is now retiring, but the spirit lives on!” As it turns out, the truck was leased, so “retirement” simply means the vehicle gets returned to its owner.