Friday, 9 May 2014
‘Artemis Fowl’ author Eoin Colfer has been named as the third Laureate na nÓg, the Irish laureate for children’s literature. Colfer replaces illustrator Niamh Sharkey in the two-year position, which...

Thursday, 8 May 2014
The Russian government has passed legislation banning swearing in books, films, television broadcasts and public performances, reports the Telegraph. The new law, which comes into effect on 1 July, bans four...

Thursday, 8 May 2014
UK-based book wholesaler Bertrams has made 20 roles redundant following a drop in profits in the past six months, reports the Bookseller. The company, which employs around 600 staff, would...

Thursday, 8 May 2014
In the US, ebook-subscription service Oyster has added approximately 500 publishers to its service, reports Publishers Weekly. Oyster CEO Eric Stromberg told Publishers Weekly that the service now includes titles...

Wednesday, 7 May 2014
Harlequin has launched an ‘online story world’ based on the ‘Chatsfield’ series of Mills & Boon titles, reports the Guardian. The online story world centres on a fictional hotel called...

Wednesday, 7 May 2014
The longlists for the 2014 PEN Literary Awards have been announced. Among the awards is the PEN/Robert W Bingham Prize, worth US$25,000 (A$27,000), which is presented to an author whose debut work...

Monday, 5 May 2014
In the US, the Mystery Writers of America has announced the winners of the 2014 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, which honour ‘the best in mystery fiction, nonfiction and television’ published...

Monday, 5 May 2014
In the US, ebook subscription service Scribd has partnered with Wiley to add 1000 titles to the service, including the For Dummies list, reports Digital Book World. The titles are...

Friday, 2 May 2014
US author Ann Leckie has won the 2014 Arthur C Clarke Award for science-fiction writing for her debut novel Ancillary Justice (Orbit). Leckie’s book was chosen from a shortlist of...

Friday, 2 May 2014
In the US, the 2014 Best Translated Book Award for fiction has been presented to Seiobo There Below by László Krasznahorkai, translated from the Hungarian by Ottilie Mulzet (New Directions),...

Friday, 2 May 2014
The German government has cut its value added tax (VAT) on audiobooks from 19% to 7%, and is campaigning to reduce the VAT on ebooks to the same level, reports the...

Thursday, 1 May 2014
In the US, seven bookish people are on Time magazine’s annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. This year’s list includes US author Donna Tartt, who won the 2014 Pulitzer...

Thursday, 1 May 2014
The Frankfurt Book Fair has announced a number of changes to its hall layout, which are designed to put English-language publishers ‘at the heart of the action’, reports the Bookseller....

Wednesday, 30 April 2014
In the UK, Andrew Solomon’s Far from the Tree (Chatto & Windus) has won this year’s Wellcome Book Prize, worth £30,000 (A$54,430), for the best new work of fiction or...

Wednesday, 30 April 2014
In the UK, Hodder Children’s Books is launching a digital-only science-fiction classics imprint, reports the Bookseller. HodderSilver will launch on 1 May with a list of five out-of-print sci-fi books:...

Tuesday, 29 April 2014
J K Rowling’s novel The Casual Vacancy (Orbit) will be adapted into a miniseries by US television network HBO, reports the Telegraph. The book will be made into a three-hour miniseries,...

Tuesday, 29 April 2014
In the UK, 10,500 individuals and groups handed out 250,000 copies of 20 titles during World Book Night, reports the Bookseller. In addition, around 2100 people signed up to give...

Monday, 28 April 2014
In the UK, the shortlists for the 2014 Orwell Prize for political writing have been announced. The titles shortlisted for the Book Prize are: Coolie Woman (Gaiutra Bahadur, Hurst); The...

Monday, 28 April 2014
Quercus chief executive Mark Smith will leave the publisher following its sale to Hodder & Stoughton, but will ‘remain a consultant to help with the transition’, reports the Bookseller. Quercus...

Thursday, 24 April 2014
In Nigeria, the shortlist for the 2014 Caine Prize for African Writing, presented for a short story by an African writer published in English, has been announced. The shortlisted writers are:...

Wednesday, 23 April 2014
The British Science Fiction Association (BSFA) announced the winners of its 2014 BSFA Awards in Glasgow, Scotland, on 20 April. The Best Novel award was tied between Ack-Ack Macaque (Gareth...

Tuesday, 22 April 2014
In the US, craft publisher Fox Chapel Publishing has purchased rights to 1400 books from New Holland Publishers UK, reports Publishers Weekly. The purchase of the books, which include travel,...

Thursday, 17 April 2014
The judge in Apple’s ebook pricing case has rejected Apple’s motion to dismiss the states’ class action claims, reports Publishers Weekly. Apple’s motion, which was filed in November 2013, argued that...

Thursday, 17 April 2014
Following the bankruptcy of Dutch bookselling chain Polare, which represented 29 stores in the Netherlands and Belgium, the majority of stores have been purchased by independent booksellers and private entrepreneurs,...

Wednesday, 16 April 2014
Norway’s four largest publishing houses are being investigated for a possible breach of competition law, reports the Bookseller. On 15 April, the Konkurransetilsynet (The Norwegian Competition Authority) raided the offices...

Wednesday, 16 April 2014
Amazon is preparing to release a 3D smartphone in June and will start shipping phones by the end of September, reports the Wall Street Journal. According the WSJ, which cites ‘people briefed...

Wednesday, 16 April 2014
In the UK, up to 18 jobs at Random House Children’s Publishers (RHCP) are at risk of redundancy, reports the Bookseller. According to the Bookseller, affected staff in marketing, publicity,...