Audio RBmedia has an agreement with Wiley to publish audiobook versions of more than 650 of the book publisher’s titles over the next three years, starting in January. The deal “allows for publication of all frontlist titles, with a primary focus on business, finance and the well-known Dummies brand, as well as select titles from tech and other key subject areas,” and it includes “select backlist titles” as well. They note that “a significant percentage of audiobooks [will] be narrated by Wiley authors, including global thought leaders, educators, and practitioners.” Bookselling Soho’s latest bookselling space is “gucci.” As in the […]
Bookstores
Bookselling: Crown Reports Opening-Day BECOMING Sales of 725,000 Units, B&N Names It Biggest First Week of the Year, and More
On Friday afternoon Crown reported that former First Lady Michelle Obama’s BECOMING sold more than 725,000 units in all formats and editions in the US and Canada (including pre-orders) on the first day of its publication, November 13. On top of the initial first printing of 1.8 million hardcovers for North America, the company says it has gone back to press for another 800,000 hardcover. (There goes your print capacity.) Barnes & Noble followed with a release Monday morning noting that Becoming recorded “the biggest first-week sales of any book this year” — and the best opening week for any adult book […]
People, Etc.
Heather Connor has joined Harlequin in the newly created role of vp, publicity, overseeing Park Row Books, Hanover Square Press, Graydon House, MIRA, HQN, and Inkyard Press. She was previously director of publicity at Berkley. Amanda Lang has been promoted to to senior publicity manager at Simon & Schuster. Co-founder of New World Library and author of Creative Visualization Shakti Gawain, 70, died November 11 from complications related to hip surgery. (She suffered from both Parkinson’s and Lewy body disease.) New World Library publisher and co-founder (the company was first called Whatever Publishing) Marc Allen says, “She was such an extraordinary […]
Bookselling: A New Barnes & Noble In New Jersey, And A Plan in Virginia
Barnes & Noble opens another concept store in Hackensack, NJ today. The 19,111 square foot store replaces a larger Barnes & Noble in the The Shops at Riverside. Vice president of stores Carl Hauch cited the original store’s success as well as the mall’s multi-year renovation as reasons for the renewal. He said, “This is a proven market for us. There’s a great community of book lovers, and it’s a community we wanted to stay in. As the mall was looking to redevelop, we wanted to continue to be in the community for years and years to come.” Separately, American City […]
People, Etc.
Sam Raim has been promoted to editor at Penguin Books. In the ever-changing landscape of German trade publishing, deputy publisher Kerstin Gleba is being promoted to publisher and ceo of Kiepenheuer & Witsch as of January 1. She will also join the board of Holtzbrinck Publishing. Current head Helge Malchow will serve as editor-at-large and “continue to work with selected authors.” Quarto appointed Jane Moriarty as a non-executive, independent board director today. The former KPMG partner headed that firm’s London Region restructuring business for 12 years. Andy Cumming, chairman of Quarto, said in the company release that she “brings substantial professional and […]
Bookselling: Riggio Interviewed; Transgender Powell’s Employee Files Complaints; ABA Warns on Tight Holiday Inventory
CNBC takes a look at “what happened” to weaken Barnes & Noble and put the company in play, which includes an interview with executive chairman Len Riggio. He remains hopeful that recent adjustments will help: “We’ve done a lot of things this year to try to put ourselves on the right track and to get our comp-store sales number to head in the positive direction … and we are hoping that that comes — we are planning for it to come — during this holiday season.” Riggio concedes that, “We did come up empty with the last couple of ceos, […]