Dominant Canadian bookseller Indigo will close two iconic Toronto stores in the coming months. The site that houses the store known as The World’s Biggest Bookstore (though it isn’t) is being sold to a developer and the building will be vacated by April 2014. The property has been owned by David Cole, son of Cole Books founder Jack Cole. Indigo owns Cole Books, and has been leasing the store. Indigo is also closing the Runnymede Chapters, a splendid store in a restored theater that was recently featured in a BuzzFeed listicle of 16 beautiful bookstores around the world. Indigo’s vp of […]
International News
Briefs: New Divisions for Macmillan Children’s UK; Charlotte Zolotow Dies; and More
Macmillan Children’s UK announced the creation of two audience-focused publishing divisions, Macmillan Under 6s, to be overseen by publisher Stephanie Barton, and Macmillan Over 6s, led by Venetia Gosling. Both Barton and Gosling will report to Belinda Rasmussen, with Gosling also working with Pan Macmillan publisher Jeremy Trevethan on crossover projects. Each new division also announced additional promotions: At Under 6s, Suzanne Carnell becomes publishing director, Picture Books & Pre-School, and Jackie McCann moves up to editorial director, Campbell and nursery. At Over 6s, Gaby Morgan has been promoted to editorial director, adding backlist strategy to her existing remit of […]
Canada Tries Again with Plans for New 2014 Book Fair
The new Toronto International Book Fair, scheduled to launch in 2014 and running November 13 through November 16, aims to give Canada a major consumer and trade book show. Craft show veteran Steven Levy is a co-director of the new event, along with Rita Davies (former head of culture for the city of Toronto) and president of Quattro Books John Calabro. They are hoping for government subsidies to help reduce booth costs for exhibitors and are conducting a search for a show programmer. Calabro tells Quill & Quire, “The one thing I heard from the independent publishers was a fear […]
Penguin Random House Promises Typhoon Aid for Philippines Staff
Penguin Random House announced they will make “a substantial donation” to the Red Cross, entirely directed to the Philippines in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan, which destroyed parts of the country and killed upwards of 10,000 people. The tragedy has a “personal connection” for Penguin Random House, ceo Markus Dohle wrote in a letter to staff, because the company’s Author Solutions division employs more than 1400 people in Cebu, close to where the worst devastation took place. While there have been no reported casualties among Author Solution staff, “we know of more than 100 people in our team with family […]
Amazon Opens Australian Kindle Store
Amazon launched a Kindle store in Australia, which lets people there buy in local currency instead of purchasing through the US Kindle store and is said to more prominently feature local authors and publishers. Multiple Amazon devices are now for sale in Australia in local currency as well, and retailers Big W (owned by Woolworth’s) and Dick Smith will carry the Kindle Fire tablets starting in December. Australian KDP authors can now get paid faster and more efficiently in local currency as well. (Previously they were paid by paper checks sent from the US, experiencing a time delay and often […]
People, Etc.
Giles Spackman will join Oxford University Press next month as group finance director. Previously he was senior finance director, global business organization, at Google. At Other Press, Robert Wicks has been promoted to publicist and Charlotte Kelly moves up to associate publicist. Dylan Hillhouse has joined HarperCollins Christian as vp, marketing for the Bible Group. Previously he worked at Mardel Christian Stores, responsible for oversight of the company’s Bible merchandising program. Author of the Arkady Renko novels Martin Cruz Smith revealed to the NYT that he has been suffering from Parkinson’s disease for the past 18 years, and that his […]