St. Martin’s Publishing Group publisher Jennifer Enderlin has been promoted to president. Macmillan president Don Weisberg writes in the announcement, “When I arrived at Macmillan six years ago I had heard of the legendary feats of Jen as editor and as publisher, and her success in launching the careers of many #1 bestselling authors. She is indeed an extraordinary editor, publisher, and student of the business whose passion for books is second to none. I have also come to admire her attributes as a friend, colleague, mentor, advisor, and most assuredly as a leader.” Enderlin has all the same direct […]
Archives for June 2020
People, Etc.
Layoffs Barnes & Noble fired a number of employees at its New York headquarters who had been furloughed since March, including a number of veteran buyers. The company didn’t provide a headcount, and confirmed the news in a maddeningly passive statement: “It is with great regret that a number of employees in the corporate office have left our employment. As with so many companies, we evaluate our needs in circumstances much changed by the Covid-19 pandemic. We now have almost all of our bookstores reopened and must align our head office requirements to our store priorities. These are wonderful employees […]
Girl with the Louding Voice Tops Amazon Best Books of the Year So Far
Amazon announced its Best Books of the Year So Far, with Abi Daré’s The Girl with the Louding Voice (Dutton) topping the list, and a full package of titles across 12 categories on the site. (Daré was a monthly Amazon pick in February but not their “spotlight” selection, though the novel was the Read with Jenna book club title that month.) Two of our Buzz Books selections made the list: Saint X, by Alexis Schaitkin (Celadon) and Sharks in the Time of Saviors, by Kawai Strong Washburn (MCD). Their top 20, in ranked order: 1. The Girl with the Louding […]
People, Etc.
MJ Franklin will move over from social editor at the NYT to join the NYT Book Review this summer as an assistant preview editor. Franklin will help cover literary fiction, memoir and essays, and he will lead their young adult coverage. Aubrey Poole, former editor at the Jimmy Patterson imprint, has joined subscription box service Literati as Acquisitions Editor and Curator for children’s books ages 0-12. Rhodes Murphy has joined the publicity agency Books Forward team as a publicist, and Rachel Hutchings has been hired as a digital marketing strategist. Quarto joined the growing list of publishers making clear they […]
Indigo Had Fourth Quarter Sales Drop and Big Writedowns, Before the Major COVID Impact
Canadian bookseller Indigo reported results for the fourth quarter ending March 28, with a poor finish to what had already been a transitional year for the company. Fourth quarter sales of $178 million (CA) were down 10.6 percent compared a year ago, falling $21 million. Stores were closed for the last two weeks of the quarter because of the pandemic, and the company said those March school break weeks “historically drove meaningful sales.” They showed a big net loss for the quarter almost equal to sales, of $171.3 million. That loss included non-cash impairment of $56.6 million — of which […]
Another Trumpsuit, Looking to Block Mary Trump’s Forthcoming Book
Donald Trump’s younger brother Robert Trump is said by a person familiar with the matter to have filed asking the Queens County Surrogate’s Court for a temporary restraining order blocking publication of Mary Trump’s forthcoming book TOO MUCH AND NEVER ENOUGH: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man. The suit is being filed there because it charges that her publication would violate a nondisclosure agreement related to the settlement of the estate of Fred Trump Sr., the president’s father. The book is scheduled for July 28 publication. Once again, the Trumps are using attorney Charles Harder, who failed […]