Judges have been announced for this year’s National Book Awards, the first time that the prizes expand their judging ranks beyond exclusively writers to include other literary tastemakers. The fiction judges include Elliott Bay Book Company buyer Rick Simonson and former NYTBR editor Chip McGrath (who chairs the panel), along with Charles Baxter, Gish Jen and Rene Steinke. The nonfiction panel features former Harcourt publisher and current vp of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Andre Bernard, alongside Jabari Asim; M.G. Lord; Lauren Redniss; and Eric Sundquist. The young people’s literature panel includes Books of Wonder owner Peter Glassman and curator […]
Briefs: Changing Hands To Open Second Location in Phoenix; NYS Court Affirms That Amazon Must Pay Sales Tax
Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe, AZ has finalized plans to open a second store in Phoenix in early November, co-owner Gayle Shanks said on the store’s website. The new location has been in the works since last year, according to Phoenix Business Journal, and the bookstore will partner with Phoenix-based real estate firm Venue Projects (“whose mission is to create inspiring places that serve and celebrate nature while promoting community”), the Beckett’s Table restaurant restaurant group, and a company focused on meeting and event space for mobile professionals to redevelop the space, formerly occupied by a restaurant. They are working […]
Amazon Acquires Goodreads
In what appears to be a definitive strike in consolidating online book discovery under one virtual roof, Amazon announced Thursday afternoon that it acquired Goodreads for an undisclosed sum. The company’s headquarters are expected to remain in San Francisco with the deal set to close in the second quarter of 2013 subject to various closing conditions. Founded in 2006 by Otis Chandler, Goodreads boasts more than 16 million members — vaulting it ahead of Shelfari (which Amazon acquired in 2008), LibraryThing (in which Amazon has a stake after buying AbeBooks in 2008), and Bookish, which finally opened for business earlier […]
People
Jeff Gomez has joined Byliner as head of author services. Previously he was vp, online consumer sales and marketing at Penguin. Rachel Vogel has joined the Waxman Leavell Literary Agency as an agent, where she will continue building her list of upmarket and literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, and memoir. She was most recently an agent at Mary Evans Inc. Amazon Publishing senior editor David Moldawer has left the company to work as director of business at education company creativeLIVE. At Crown Publishing Group, Candice Chaplin has been promoted to imprint sales director, and Jacqueline Lebow has been named imprint sales director, publishing brands […]
Extra Week in Fiscal Year Boosts Books-A-Million’s Full-Year Sales and Profits
Books-A-Million reported fourth quarter and full year results Wednesday afternoon, which reflect an extra added week that happens once every six years in the company’s reporting cycle. After four straight quarters of sales gains, BAMM saw a small decline (0.8 percent) at $165.6 million compared to a year ago. Same-store sales continued their pattern of quarterly declines, down 6.1 percent, though net income, at $8.1 million for the quarter was up from the $7.6 million reported during the same period last year. For the year, net sales increased 7.5 percent to $503.8 million (from $468.5 million, though based on a […]
People, Awards, Etc.
Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe, 82, “one of Africa’s most widely read novelists and one of the continent’s towering men of letters,” died after a brief illness, according to agent Andrew Wylie. His THINGS FALL APART is said to have sold over 8 million copies and been published in more than 50 languages. HarperCollins svp, publishing transformation Carolyn Pittis is leaving the company on March 29 after more than two decades to work as a private change management consultant. In her time at Harper Pittis served a number of roles, from book production, managing editorial, business development, and sales to consumer forecasting and supply chain management, […]