Three women spoke to NPR on the record to accuse Sherman Alexie of inappropriate conduct, after he addressed anonymous allegations in a statement last week. NPR received reports about Alexie from a total of 10 women, but seven have chosen to remain anonymous. They say: “A clear pattern emerged: The women reported behavior ranging from inappropriate comments both in private and in public, to flirting that veered suddenly into sexual territory, unwanted sexual advances and consensual sexual relations that ended abruptly. The women said Alexie had traded on his literary celebrity to lure them into uncomfortable sexual situations.” Erika Wurth, a 22-year-old Native American […]
Archives for March 2018
Bookselling: Barnes & Noble Tries A Book Club, Amazon Books for Colorado
Barnes & Noble is trying again with a program to put some selection and promotional muscle around a particular title (remember Barnes & Noble Recommends?). The new initiative adopts the moniker of the moment, the Barnes & Noble Book Club, and the first selection is Meg Wolitzer‘s highly-touted THE FEMALE PERSUASION, publishing April 3. BN’s exclusive edition will include an essay by the author and a reading group guide. The first of their “seasonal” in-store book club nights is scheduled for May 2, at 6 PM local time at stores nationwide. Attendees will receive “one free regular, tall, hot or iced […]
NYT to Launch Monthly Audiobook Bestseller Lists Later This Week
The New York Times will publish audiobook bestseller lists for the first time, on a monthly basis only, debuting online on Thursday, March 8 (and appearing in the March 18 issue of the Sunday Book Review). All of their bestseller lists will go live on the NYT website on Thursday mornings, instead of on Friday. Additionally, the paper expanding the paperback bestseller lists from 10 positions to 15, “in response to reader interest.” The monthly audiobooks lists will note the top 15 fiction and top 15 nonfiction audio titles from the previous month. TBR editor Pamela Paul says in the […]
Harper Acquires AMACOM
Harper Collins announced it has acquired the trade book assets of AMACOM from the American Management Association International. That means they bought the list, without the accompanying infrastructure. Their 600-title catalog will be run as a sub-imprint of the recently launched Harper Collins Leadership line, based in Nashville. HCL publisher Jeff James will oversee AMACOM business development, marketing and editorial. Spokesperson Casey Harrell confirmed to us that “personnel who work on the AMACOM imprint are not employees of HarperCollins. We are identifying jobs to support HarperCollins Leadership and are working through a transitional plan.” Harper ceo Brian Murray said in the […]
People, Etc.
Michael Green is leaving his position as president and publisher of Philomel on March 16 to focus on his own writing. He has been with Penguin for 27 years. Green says, “I’m excited. Twenty-seven years is a long time to spend focusing on other people’s writing. I’m giving myself permission to focus on myself. I’ve loved my time at Philomel and still feel immense pride to be have been part of Penguin Random House. I’ll always be a Penguin at heart.” Amanda Pelletier will join Scribner as a senior publicist on March 12. Previously she was a publicist at Harper Collins. In promotions […]
AAP Stats Rebounded In October
AAP StatShot figures show a strong October 2017, though we have demonstrated that this measure has extreme fluctuations from month to month (and is further complicated by a constantly revised historical baseline). The trade was due for a strong October, since September AAP numbers were down. Also, a year ago publishers had steered their big releases away from October with the presidential election looming, so the improved October shipments show a return to normal. With a stack of big releases (including Dan Brown’s Origin), adult gross sales of $693 million were more than a return to the $640 to $650 […]