The Japan Times looks at the long-term trend of a shrinking publishing business in Japan. (Note carefully that they include books, magazines and manga together in a single category.) With sales of approximately $18.365 billion annually (2.08 trillion yen) sales are falling about three percent a year, and are down 21 percent since 1996. Readership is dropping, and so are the number of sales outlets: “Hundreds of small and midsize bookstores have closed in recent years. The number of shops belonging to the Japan Booksellers Federation, a national industry group of bookstores selling newly published books, came to 5,869 in […]
International News
Rushdie's Day in Court
Salman Rushdie appeared in London’s High Court to hear former policeman and author of ON HER MAJESTY’S SERVICE Ron Evans apologize and admit that the first version of the book contained 11 “falsehoods.” Rushdie told the press after the hearing to settle his libel suit, “It is a very difficult thing to do, to stand up in the High Court of London and admit to be a liar. If they do that, it is enough for me.” (He did not seek damages.) An attorney for Evans and publisher John Blake still tries to insist that they “have voluntarily removed the […]
Denmark Intends to Publish MEDINA
Danish publishers association Trykkeselskabet has approved the publication of Shery Jones’s novel THE JEWEL OF MEDINA in Denmark. A spokesperson told a Danish newspaper, “Fear or threats should not keep a book from being published. It would be principally and entirely a renewal of all that Denmark has already been through with the Mohammed cartoon affair.” To that point, Jones’s agent Natasha Kern wrote to the society, “When you consider what’s happened in your country, I admire your readiness to ensure that freedom of expression is not obstructed.”Danish story
Rushdie Wins Some Concessions from Author
Salman Rushdie’s lawyer Mark Stephens says that author of On Her Majesty’s Service Ron Evans has “accepted that much of the story published in the Mail on Sunday [excerpted from the forthcoming book] was false,” adding that Evans “was a police driver making out he was an armed special protection officer.” Stephens also says that “the authors have admitted that there were falsehoods in the original manuscript and have made amendments accordingly.” Publisher John Blake expects to have a revised version of the book ready for release next week.Guardian
Push On to Publish Olympic Medallists
Britain’s surprising medal haul at the Beijing Olympics has prompted a flurry of interest in potential book projects, with agents sounding out publishers for deals for the likes of double-gold swimming champion Rebecca Adlington, medal-winning cyclist Victoria Pendleton and teenage diver Tom Daley. Giles Elliott, sports editor at Transworld, said that since Ben Ainslie’s gold medal win in sailing last Sunday, there have been agents trying to tout tie-in sports titles. “They have been going around trying to see what kind of interest there is,” he said. Tom Whiting, editorial director at Harper non-fiction, added: “There are a lot of […]
Serbian Publisher Withdraws "Medina"
Serbian publisher BeoBook says that they have withdrawn their printing of Sherry Jones’ novel THE JEWEL OF MEDINA “because of protests from local Islamic leaders who said it insulted Muhammad and his family,” the AP reports. (By other accounts, the protests were led by one a Belgrade mufti–and another mufti spoke out against the intimidation.) The company expressed “apology and regret” to Muslims as part of a statement posted on their web site. They are said to have printed approximately 1,000 copies of the book a few weeks ago. The Washington Post files a long piece on the larger controversy […]