Crowdfunded book wins inaugural Book of the Year at UK Bookseller Industry Awards

In the UK, Paul Kingsnorth’s The Wake, published by crowdfunding platform Unbound, has been awarded the inaugural Book of the Year at the 2015 Bookseller Industry Awards, reports the Bookseller. The book, written in re-imagined old English and set in 1066, was crowdfunded after Unbound founder and publisher John Mitchinson acquired the rights to the title. Judge Caroline Sanderson said: ‘What stood out about The Wake is what it proves: that publishing is now so creative and fleet of foot that anything is possible. Moreover, it is a shining example of a 21st century book: both a beautiful, traditional object that is a pleasure to possess, and a publication that came about through the power of online crowd-sourcing.’ The trade edition of The Wake sold 5000 copies. Other editions include a coptic-stitched hardback. The Book of the Year recognise books that best demonstrate ‘a close collaboration between the publisher and author that culminates in something extraordinary for the reader’.

Category: International news