Inside the Australian and New Zealand book industry

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Quote of the week 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
‘You can't outbook the traditional book. You have to have a device that can do things that the print book can't do'--Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos at the launch of the...

ARW gets NZ go-ahead for Borders bid 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
The New Zealand Commerce Commission has cleared Angus & Robertson/Whitcoull's Group Holdings (ARW) to acquire 100% of the shares in Borders NZ.Commission chair Paula Rebstock said the Commission was satisfied...

ACBA conference 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
The Australian Campus Booksellers Association (ACBA) held its annual conference in Sydney last week. With over 60 delegates and ‘some great speakers', outgoing ACBA president Rolf Wilkens of the Swinburne...

Around the world 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Among the stories added to our Around the World blog this week:LP warns about Chinese guidebook confiscationsIndian company was bidder for BordersChinese dissident jailed for illegally publishing bookRegan sues News...

Hardie Grant celebrates 10 years 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Hardie Grant Publishing celebrated 10 years in business with a cocktail party held in Melbourne last Friday night. Guests, including Hardie Grant staff from both Sydney and Melbourne, authors and...

ASA warns on digital rights 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) has expressed ‘serious concerns' over rights and contractual issues caused by the increasing delivery of digitised content.The ASA's concerns have been prompted by developments...

Amazon launches Kindle e-book reader 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Online retailer Amazon.com has released its long-awaited Kindle e-book reader in the US.The lightweight, slim, hand-held device uses an updated version of the ‘electronic ink' screen first seen on the...

Bestsellers this week 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Former rugby league player Andrew Johns' autobiography The Two of Me has hit the charts this week with a bang. It comes second after Matthew Reilly's Six Sacred Stones in the...

Forthcoming events 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Trade events coming up over the next week, as shown on our events calendar, include: Australian Copyright Council - Law and Practice Symposium, Sydney 22 - 23 NovemberThe Annual Wellington...

RiP Ira Levin 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Ira Levin, the author of many successful novels including Rosemary’s Baby and The Stepford Wives, has died in Manhattan aged 78.

In brief 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Rivers and Siems leave Phoenix to found Teaching SolutionsHaving sold their shares in Phoenix Education to their partner David Stewart, Barney Rivers and Ruth Siems have now founded a new...

Johnston steps down as chair of the Big Book Club 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Stephanie Johnston of Wakefield Press, founding chair of the South Australian Big Book Club, announced her resignation from the position at the Club's AGM last week. ‘I'll remain on the...

‘Strong growth’ for Murdoch Books in Australia 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Murdoch Books has enjoyed ‘strong growth' over the financial year to June, according to CEO Juliet Rogers. Rogers said this was ‘despite challenges in [the company's] international markets due to...

HarperCollins launches large-print list in Australia 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
HarperCollins has announced it will launch a new large print imprint in January next year. The imprint, HarperLuxe, is intended to ‘provide a more comfortable reading experience.' Featuring a 14-point...

Human Rights awards shortlist announced 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
The shortlisted titles for this year's Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commision's Human Rights Awards arts nonfiction category have been announced. The shortlisted titles are: Acting From the Heart: Australian...

Attenborough leaves S&S 

Sunday, 18 November 2007
Simon & Schuster Australia MD Jon Attenborough has announced his resignation.Attenborough has headed S&S in Australia since 1987. 'I have decided that it is the right time,' he said in...

Win a $100 Virgin Blue voucher! 

Sunday, 18 November 2007
We are about to undergo a major revision of the Media Extra service and we'd like you to spend just three minutes telling us how you use the current service...

Media Extra: What’s Hot 

Sunday, 18 November 2007
Ian Rankin's Exit Music clambers to the top this week, closely followed by Sri Lankan born -- but Australian based -- Michelle de Krester with The Lost Dog. This is her third...

Readers Feast announces Crime and Justice festival 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Melbourne CBD bookseller Reader's Feast has announced ambitious plans for a major Crime and Justice literary festival, to be held in Melbourne next July.At a launch earlier today at the...

Bestsellers this week 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
The same two books that were first and second last week in the bestseller charts are up there again--Matthew Reilly's Six Sacred Stones and Patricia Cornwell's Book of the Dead...

Forthcoming events 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Trade events coming up over the next week, as shown on our events calendar, include: Australian Campus Booksellers Association conference, Sydney 14-16 November9th NSW Writers' Centre Australian Publishers and Authors...

RiP Bob Kowalski 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Literary agent Margaret Gee writes: I had known Bob for twenty years and he was a cherished friend and author. He shot to bestsellerdom in Australia with his legendary book,...

RiP Norman Mailer 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Author Norman Mailer, winner of two Pulitzer Prizes for Armies of the Night and The Executioner's Song, has died aged 84.

A better Better Read Than Dead 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
After several months of building--and the loss of some stock when some unexpectedly wet Sydney weather coincided with some roof work--the Better Read than Dead bookshop in Sydney's Newtown has...

CAL announces new model for payments 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
The Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) has announced changes to the way it will distribute payments in the new year. Under CALdirect, a new system to be introduced in mid-2008, members...