Amazon chose Exit West by Mohsin Hamid as their spotlight pick for March, and their featured debut is One of the Boys by Daniel Magariel. The rest of the etailer’s best books of March list features: White Tears, Hari Kunzru The Night Ocean, Paul LaFarge Irresistible, Adam Alter Learn Better, Ulrich Boser All Grown Up, Jami Attenberg Word by Word, Kory Stamper The Wanderers, Meg Howrey The Rules Do Not Apply, Ariel Levy Barnes and Noble’s best new fiction list for March recommends: Dead Letters, Caite Dolan-Leach The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, Lisa See In the Name of the Family, Sarah […]
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Margaux Weisman has joined Vintage/Anchor as editor. Previously she was an associate editor at William Morrow. At Sourcebooks, Tiana Marzette has been promoted to inside sales representative. Brad Sharp has been promoted to director of manufacturing at Bookmasters. Jennifer Schaper has joined Duke University Press as sales manager. Previously she was senior manager for international rights at Perseus Books Group. When Douglas Brinkley‘s book THE UNRAVELED TALES OF BOB DYLAN was first announced in 2012 it was one of two books signed for Johnny Depp’s “imprint” at HarperCollins Infinitum Nihil — expected for publication in 2015. Brinkley is finally working on the […]
Bookselling: Amazon Opens In Dedham, Waterstones Criticized for Modest Stores “Posing” As Indies
Amazon’s previously-announced 5,800-square-foot bookstore at Legacy Place in Dedham, MA will open on Tuesday, after holding a preview on Saturday. As previously announced, this is Amazon’s first bookstore to open on the East Coast (and fourth to open so far), with at least three more “coming soon” in Lynnfield, MA; Paramus, NJ; and Manhattan’s Columbus Circle. Waterstones is receiving criticism in British media for small-town bookstores they have opened over the past 3 years, charged with “posing as independent bookshops to avoid the backlash against the homogenization of Britain’s high streets,” the Guardian writes. The stores, which are in Rye, Southwold and Harpenden, notify customers of their corporate affiliation with […]
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Kari Sutherland has joined Bradford Literary Agency as an agent. Previously she was an editor at Harper Children’s. Bestselling Australian children’s book author Mem Fox, 70, is giving a face to the excesses of border control under the Trump administration. Now back in Australia, Fox told the media that she was detained and interrogated for two hours at Los Angeles Airport in early February, while traveling to a literary conference in Milwaukee, accused of having the wrong visa. (US officials were in error; Fox has visited the US more than 100 times in the past without incident.) She told Australia’s […]
HarperCollins Launches Book Recommendation Bots
HarperCollins has announced the launch of BookGenie and Epic Reads, two bot-powered book recommendation engines available through Facebook Messenger. Both provide book recommendations through one-on-one chatting. With Bookgenie, readers request a recommendation based on a book they enjoyed, or select from curated recommendations. Epic Reads, related to the publisher’s YA-focused site, allows readers to specify what kind of mood they’re in, as well as what books and authors they enjoy. HarperCollins vice president of marketing Carrie Bloxson said in the announcement, “We’re always looking for ways to help readers discover new books and authors. The BookGenie bot combines the power of […]
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News Corp. has announced that Bedi Singh will step down as chief financial officer on March 1. Susan Panuccio, currently cfo of News Corp. Australia, will succeed him. Executive chairman Rupert Murdoch said in the release: “Through his astute financial management of key acquisitions and divestitures, and with the prudent institution of cost controls across the businesses, Bedi has helped News Corp. weather the challenges of this era better than its peers, and put it on firm footing for long-term growth and profitability.” Singh, who has served as cfo since 2013, will continue to advise the company on digital property interests […]