National ambassador for young people’s literature Jon Scieszka speaks at length to the LAT about getting kids, and boys in particular, to read. “My first tip is to include not just fiction in your idea of reading. Include graphic novels, include Calvin and Hobbes. Third- and fourth-grade boys devour those — and they’re really sophisticated, but parents will say, ‘Oh, that’s not really reading.’ ” He recalls that “I first saw fairy tales in ‘The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show,’ and they sounded kind of familiar. Then I read the fairy tales. Then I wrote my own books [in which he […]
Plus: Skylight for Kids; More "Guernsey" and Announcements
Skylight’s new next-door space Skylight Books 1814 “allows us to expand a number of our sections into the new store, but also expand and better display things in our existing store, including the children’s section and the fiction section,” co-owner Kerry Slattery tells the LAT. After a soft opening last month, on Saturday they “are throwing an opening gala Saturday that is equal parts coming-out party and thank-you celebration for the community.” Slattery notes, “When we opened 12 years ago, we were debating if we would even have a children’s section, because it seemed to be mostly older people and […]
Borders Sales Fall, But Debt Is Trimmed
Wall Street seems to think that Borders can survive following a second quarter report showing weak sales but a reduced operating loss and slimmer debt-load, with shares up twenty-five percent over yesterday’s close in early trading. (That said, the stock price is still below the strike price of the options granted to Pershing Square earlier this year when they provided the company with an emergency loan.) Sales from continuing operations in the fiscal second quarter actually fell more than expected, reaching just $749 million, but the company’s loss from continuing operations of $11.3 million (19 cents per share) was much […]
Roche Joins Harper UK
Former ceo of Borders UK David Roche will work for Harper UK on “a short term consultancy basis to provide a unique insight into our sales operation from the perspective of a real retail expert.” He reports directly to ceo Victoria Barnsley. The company is still looking for a full-time group sales and marketing director.Bookseller In other personnel news, Shanta Small will move over to become director of publicity at Penguin Children’s on October 1. Most recently she has been the head of marketing and publicity at Penguin’s Tarcher Books, after five years in the publicity department at Random House […]
Either Way, Tintin Gets a Top Director
Brussels’ Herge Studios caused a bit of confusion yesterday in announcing that Peter Jackson would direct the first film in a planned Tintin trilogy for Dreamworks. A representative for Steven Spielberg says that he still intends to direct the film, and a representative for Jackson agrees. Jackson will be a producer on the first film film and intends to direct the second one; first he has to complete Lovely Bones (in post-production) and write scripts for the two Hobbit movies. The first Tintin is based on two books, The Secret of the Unicorn and Red Rackham’s Treasure, with a screenplay […]
Japan's Shrinking Publishing Business
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 […]