Sterling Publishing has acquired gift company Knock Knock, which includes the brand Em & Friends. Knock Knock will be overseen by Union Square & Co. publisher and cco Emily Meehan, “with the operations and distribution of Knock Knock titles remaining business as usual,” according to a release. Knock Knock founder and ceo Jen Bilik and Em & Friends founder Emily McDowell report to Meehan as creative consultants. VP sales & operations Jim Papscoe and vp, associate publisher Craig Hetzer will “both focus on the day-to-day operations of the overall business” and will also report to Meehan.
People 4/7
Kathleen Morandini has joined Bloomsbury Children's as children’s assistant school and library marketing manager.
Obituary: Alan Hruska
Soho Press co-founder Alan J. Hruska, 88, died of lymphoma on March 29 at home in Manhattan. He founded Soho in 1986 along with his wife, Laura Chapman Hruska, and Juris Jurjevics. A litigator at Cravath Swaine & Moore for 44 years, he was also the author of multiple novels, starting with Borrowed Time (1985) and recently including a number of recent legal thrillers. His daughter Bronwen Hruska is the publisher of Soho Press.
Duke Once Again Appeals DUP Union
Duke University has filed yet another appeal challenging the Duke University Press Union election, the union said on Twitter. The union was certified in March, and this marks the third time the university has contested the organization with the National Labor Relations Board. According to the union, they remain certified and members hold union rights during the appeals process, unless the NLRB issues a stay or reverses course to uphold the university’s arguments. The union wrote on Twitter, “This is an appeal to what is essentially the Supreme Court of labor disputes—making the same arguments that the NLRB has rejected […]
Pen/Faulkner Award for Fiction
The Wrong End of the Telescope by Rabih Alameddine (Grove Atlantic) won the 2022 Pen/Faulkner Award for Fiction.
April Book Club Picks
This month’s GMA Book Club pick is Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus.