A two-year dispute between Emma Cline and her former boyfriend, Chaz Reetz-Laiolo has erupted in dueling lawsuits filed Wednesday in California federal court over allegations that Cline plagiarized portions of her 2016 debut novel The Girls through the use of computer spyware — allegations that Cline, in conjunction with Penguin Random House and The Clegg Agency vehemently deny. Reetz-Laiolo’s 79-page complaint (with more than 500 pages of supplemental exhibits) spins a story of Cline installing a keylogging software on a laptop that was once hers, later sold to him for $300, that was used to monitor his emails, as well […]
Archives for November 2017
Briefs: NYT’s Top Ten Books, And More
The New York Times Book Review editors announced their top ten books of 2017, with the individual critics’ lists still to come. In fiction, Jesmyn Ward’s National Book Award-winning Sing, Unburied, Sing makes the list, along with NBA shortlisted Pachinko by Min Jin Lee, plus: Autumn, by Ali Smith Exit West, by Mohsin Hamid The Power, by Naomi Alderman The nonfiction list: The Evolution of Beauty, by Richard O. Prum Grant, by Ron Chernow Locking Up Our Own, by James Forman Jr. Prairie Fires, by Caroline Fraser Priestdaddy, by Patricia Lockwood People At Workman Publishing, Caitlin Kleinschmidt has been promoted to national accounts […]
Barnes & Noble’s Sales Decline Below Expectations Once More
Barnes & Noble reported earnings for their fiscal second quarter ending October 28, once again reporting mediocre results: Sales and store comps declined, and the loss grew, with both sales and earnings missing analysts’ modest expectations. Shares fell approximately 10 percent in the first hour of trading, back to about $7 a share, on the disappointing results. But there is a glimmer of encouragement. After years of touting everything but books (digital devices, educational toys & games, vinyl records, maker fairs, collectibles, etc.), with limited effect, Barnes & Noble has decided to be a bookseller: In the new release, ceo […]
Minnesota Public Radio Fires Garrison Keillor Over Allegation Of Improper Behavior
Minnesota Public Radio has terminated its contracts with Garrison Keillor, producer of the Writer’s Almanac series and former host of A Prairie Home Companion, “after recently learning of inappropriate behavior with an individual who worked with him.” MPR said in a statement, “MPR takes these allegations seriously and we are committed to maintaining a safe, respectful and supportive work environment for all employees and everyone associated with MPR. We want a workplace where anyone who experiences unwanted behavior feels comfortable in reporting concerns to MPR. Discrimination, harassment, retaliation or other inappropriate behaviors will not be tolerated.” Keillor told the AP he was […]
People, Etc.
Sean Concannon has joined No Starch Press as sales director. Most recently he handled national accounts, special markets, and institutional library sales at Taylor & Francis. Abigail Novak will join Touchstone as a publicist starting December 11. Previously she was assistant publicist at Harper Collins. December features an unusual Pennie’s Pick at Costco: Liane Moriarty “is so good at what she does that I can’t just pick one of her titles; I am suggesting you read everything you can by her.” The chain is featuring The Husband’s Secret, Big Little Lies, and What Alice Forgot. Distribution Quarto will start distributing Russian […]
Springer Nature Aims for IPO
Springer Nature, the joint venture between Holtzbrinck and BC Partners, is in discussions with JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley about launching a European IPO some time next year, “people close to the matter” tell Reuters. Those people are touting a potential value of 4 to 5 billion euros for the company. Minority holder BC Partners would sell some of their shares for the public offering, reducing their stake, while 53 percent owner Holtzbrinck might buy more, to retain a big stake. The report says they are considering a capital increase of 700 to 800 million euros, looking to float 25 percent […]