Inside the Australian and New Zealand book industry

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Quote of the week 

Wednesday, 31 July 2013
‘Borders and Angus & Robertson’s sales were 40% Australian published books. Now our biggest bookshop, Amazon, has an infinitesimally small number of Australian books being sold. We have entered a...

Adidem Group acquires full ownership of Affirm Press

Tuesday, 30 July 2013
Melbourne-based publisher Affirm Press has been wholly acquired by previous part-owner, the Adidem Group. Affirm Press publisher Martin Hughes told Books+Publishing that he sold his share in the business to...

Booku to close this week 

Tuesday, 30 July 2013
Online bookseller Boomerang Books has again announced that it will close its ebookstore Booku, just over a month after announcing that the store would continue to trade. As previously reported...

QLA people’s choice award shortlist announced

Monday, 29 July 2013
The Queensland Literary Awards (QLA) has announced the shortlist for the Courier-Mail People’s Choice Queensland Book of the Year Award, worth $5000. The shortlisted books are: Fiction My Hundred Lovers...

Bestsellers this week 

Monday, 29 July 2013
The Cuckoo’s Calling (Hachette) by Robert Galbraith, which was revealed to be an alias of J K Rowling, is at the top of the fastest movers chart this week. Following...

Inaugural Editia Prize winner announced

Monday, 29 July 2013
The inaugural Editia Prize has been awarded to Minyma by former social worker and freelance writer Carly Lorente. Lorente will receive a $2500 advance on royalties, with Minyma to be...

BWF 2013 program launched 

Friday, 26 July 2013
A ‘Great Debate’ with former politicians and a day dedicated to comics and graphic novels are among the highlights of this year’s Brisbane Writers Festival (BWF), which has launched its full...

Hachette to close New Zealand publishing program 

Friday, 26 July 2013
Hachette has announced a major restructure of its New Zealand operations, which will involve the relocation of its finance, administration and IT divisions to Australia and the closure of its New...

RIP Marg Dennithorne 

Friday, 26 July 2013
Ian McCarthy from Penguin Australia writes: Marg (Margaret) Dennithorne passed away on Friday 12 July. Her funeral was held in Castlemaine one week later, on Friday 19 July. It was...

Pearson to close SA, WA, QLD offices 

Thursday, 25 July 2013
Pearson Australia has confirmed to Books+Publishing that it will close its offices in Adelaide, Perth and Brisbane as part of a major restructure of its educational publishing business, announced earlier...

Book Expo Australia announced

Thursday, 25 July 2013
A book expo to promote the Australian book industry and encourage readers to buy from Australian booksellers will be held at the Sydney Showground on the weekend of 30-31 August...

NZ Post Book Awards 2013 finalists announced 

Wednesday, 24 July 2013
The finalists for this year’s New Zealand Post Book Awards have been announced. The finalists in each category are: Fiction In the Absence of Heroes (Anthony McCarten, Vintage) The Big...

Kibble, Dobbie 2013 winners announced

Wednesday, 24 July 2013
The winners of this year’s Kibble and Dobbie Literary Awards have been announced. The winner of the $30,000 Nita B Kibble Literary Award, which recognises the work of an established...

Quote of the week 

Wednesday, 24 July 2013
‘For debut authors, independent book retailers are the best—and sometimes only—chance at getting into readers’ hands, because that bookseller will often physically put a book there along with a personal...

Moorhouse wins Philip Hodgins Memorial Medal 

Tuesday, 23 July 2013
Frank Moorhouse has been awarded this year’s Philip Hodgins Memorial Medal at the Mildura Writers’ Festival in Victoria. The award, which is named after the Australian poet and co-founder of...

Writers’ retreat launched in Tasmania 

Tuesday, 23 July 2013
A new writers’ retreat has been established in a property in Taroona, south of Hobart. Novel Writing Retreats Australia, which will officially open in February 2014, is being run by...

Man Booker Prize 2013 longlist announced

Tuesday, 23 July 2013
The Luminaries by New Zealand author Eleanor Catton (Granta) is among the 13 books longlisted for 2013 Man Booker Prize.  The Luminaries is Catton’s second novel, following The Rehearsal, which was first published by...

Harlequin announces ebook partnership with ‘Cosmo’

Monday, 22 July 2013
Harlequin Australia has announced a partnership with Cosmopolitan magazine that will involve the publisher launching a digital romance fiction program called ‘Cosmo Red Hot Reads from Harlequin’. The partnership will...

Bestsellers this week 

Monday, 22 July 2013
The town of Chester’s Mill in Maine in the US is suddenly and inexplicably sealed off from the rest of the world by an invisible and impenetrable dome in Stephen King’s Under...

Edify appointed Pearson distributor in New Zealand 

Monday, 22 July 2013
Edify, a new distribution company founded by former managing director of Pearson New Zealand Adrian Keane, will take over the sales and distribution of Pearson’s educational products in New Zealand in...

Exisle launches children’s imprint

Monday, 22 July 2013
Independent publisher Exisle Publishing has announced a new imprint that will specialise in children’s books. EK Books will publish its first book in October and plans to publish six to...