The “best books” lists are arriving in a wave: The New York Times their individual critics’ favorite books of the year — books editor and staff writer John Williams writes, “If we had to use a single word to describe the past year in books, it might be eclectic” — and Janet Maslin is still contributing her own ten favorites. Dwight…
Here We Are Again
As sometimes happens when you get a little older, with the big election and early arrival Thanksgiving we decided to postpone marking the anniversary of PublishersMarketplace.com for a month. Now just over 17 years old, we’re almost legal and getting ready for our adulthood. The standard reminder: Publishers Lunch is older by about a year…
Corporate: Australian Online Bookseller to Sell Crowdfunded Stock
Australian online bookseller Booktopia has a new plan to raise investment capital after dropping a plan to go public in late 2016. The company is using crowdfunding platform Equitise to raise between $3 million and $10 million (AU), Books and Publishing reports. They are selling 8.1 percent of the business, which had sales of $113…
People, Etc.
Alive Literary Agency founder and CEO Rick Christian will step down March 1 after 30 years, and the agency has been sold internally to president Bryan Norman and evp Lisa Jackson. “I am grateful I could spend the bulk of my working years doing what I love with people I adore, realize my dreams, and…
As Brazilian Book Trade Struggles, A Call for Support
Brazil’s book trade is suffering mightily from bankruptcy reorganization filings over the past month from the country’s two largest bookstore chains, Cultura and Saraiva. The latter reported debt of approximately $168 million, and among their top creditors is Editora Schwarcz / Companhia das Letras — where Penguin Random House recently boosted their stake to a majority…
Picks: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and More
Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield is Amazon’s Spotlight Pick for December, and they skipped a featured debut this month. The rest of the list: How Long ‘Til Black Future Month?, by N.K. Jemisin Kingdom of the Blind, by Louise Penny Milkman, by Anna Burns This is Cuba, by David Ariosto The Dakota Winters,…