The Baillie Gifford Prize for Nonfiction announced the winner of its 2023 award.
People 11/17
Sourcebooks and PRH Form Callisto China
Sourcebooks has joined with the Penguin Random House North Asia office to create Callisto China. The new line will publish a selection of Callisto’s titles in the local language. When PRH acquired Callisto’s assets in May in a Sourcebooks-led deal, Sourcebooks ceo Dominique Raccah identified international expansion as a clear growth opportunity. She says in the announcement, “Callisto has developed an extraordinary line of books which have never had exposure to an international audience. This new collaborative partnership with PRH North Asia brings Callisto to the Chinese market in a really comprehensive way.” PRH North Asia already distributes Sourcebooks and […]
Powell’s Union Rejects Contract After Tenative Agreement
The Powell’s Bookstore union rejected a contract proposal from management, after the union’s bargaining committee tentatively accepted it on October 19. When the agreement was put to a vote by the union membership on November 9, 62 percent of participants voted no due to dissatisfaction with the starting wage and pay increases. “While the Local 5 bargaining team endorsed a ‘yes’ vote, we are a democratic organization and the membership has the final say,” the union stated on social media. “The ILWU Local 5 bargaining team has reached out to the Powell’s team to resume bargaining ASAP, and to continue working […]
Distribution: Red Wheel/Weiser
Red Wheel/Weiser will now distribute Crossed Crow Books, Moon Dust Press, and Womancraft Publishing. They will also acquire Quest Books, the imprint of Theosophical Publishing House in January 2024. “Red Wheel/Weiser has been a trusted distribution partner for many years. In addition to meeting our business needs, their vision and mission have always been in alignment with our own. We are heartened that the invaluable books in the Quest Books catalog will continue to reach new audiences through Red Wheel/Weiser’s thoughtful stewardship,” said Barbara B. Hebert, PhD, former president of the Theosophical Society in America.
Obituary: A.S. Byatt
Novelist, critic, and poet A.S. Byatt, 87, died on November 16. She was the author of six collections of short stories and 11 novels, including Possession, which won the Booker Prize in 1990. Clara Farmer, her publisher at Chatto & Windus, writes in a statement: “Antonia’s books are the most wonderful jewel-boxes of stories and ideas. Her compulsion to write (A4 blue notebook always to hand) and her ability to create intricate skeins of narrative was remarkable. It was always a treat to see her, to hear updates about her evolving literary characters and indulge in delicious titbits of literary […]