German-language market reports enduring digital sales growth post-lockdown
13 August 2020
Ebook sales have seen continuous growth before, during and after the Covid-19 lockdown period, according to a Bookwire Insights Report on ebook and audiobook sales in the German-language book market....
HarperCollins revenue down 5%
10 August 2020
HarperCollins’ total revenue fell 5% in the year to 30 June, according to parent company News Corp. In its annual earnings report, News Corp reported that the publisher’s full year...
WHSmith plans restructure, 1500 redundancies
6 August 2020
In the UK, bookselling chain WHSmith has announced plans for a restructure that could lead to 1500 roles made redundant across the business, reports the Bookseller. In a trading update,...
Hugo Awards 2020 winners announced
3 August 2020
The winners of this year’s Hugo Awards, presented annually by the World Science Fiction Convention, have been announced. Best novel went to A Memory Called Empire (Arkady Martine, Tor); best...
‘Look Up!’ wins Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2020
31 July 2020
In the UK, picture book Look Up! (Nathan Byron, illus by Dapo Adeola, Puffin) has won the overall £5000 (A$9010) Waterstones Children’s Book Prize. Look Up! was named the winner...
French, Italian markets on the mend
30 July 2020
The Bookseller has reported that the French and Italian book markets are both recovering after two months of Covid-19 lockdown. According to the French Booksellers Association, sales from independent booksellers...
Nigerian-British writer Okojie wins Caine Prize for African Writing
29 July 2020
Nigerian-British writer Irenosen Okojie has won the 2020 Caine Prize for African Writing, worth £10,000 (A$18,000), for her short story ‘Grace Jones’. The story appears in Okojie's 2019 collection Nudibranch...
Booker Prize 2020 longlist announced
28 July 2020
The longlist for the 2020 Booker Prize has been announced. The 13 books longlisted for the £50,000 (A$90,000) prize are: The New Wilderness (Diane Cook, Oneworld) This Mournable Body (Tsitsi...
Scholastic revenue drops 10%
27 July 2020
Scholastic has reported a 10% drop in revenue for the fiscal year to May 2020, after sales plunged in the fourth quarter due to Covid-19, reports the Bookseller. Revenue fell...
European book sales mostly ‘well below’ pre-Covid levels
24 July 2020
European book sales are mostly well below pre-Covid levels despite an uptick since stores reopened, reports the Bookseller. The Federation of European Publishers (FEP) report, which is described as an...
PA reports 2019 as best ever year for UK publishing
23 July 2020
In the UK, the Publishers Association (PA) has reported that 2019 was the best year for publishing in the market’s history, reports Publishing Perspectives. According to the PA’s 2019 yearbook,...
UK customers unsure about returning to bookshops
20 July 2020
In the UK, a Nielsen survey has found 35% of regular bookshop customers are unsure about returning to bricks and mortar shops now that lockdown has eased, reports the Bookseller....
Frankfurt reveals virtual program details
16 July 2020
The organisers of the Frankfurt Book Fair, which will run from 12–18 October, have revealed the details of the fair’s virtual program, reports the Bookseller. As previously reported, in May...
BA welcomes Gardners expansion
14 July 2020
In the UK, the Booksellers Association (BA) has welcomed the news that wholesaler Gardners has bought assets of Bertrams, the book wholesaler that went into administration earlier this year. Last...
US half-year print book sales up 2.8%
13 July 2020
In the US, print book sales in the first half of 2020 were up 2.8% on the same period in 2019 according to NPD BookScan, reports Publishers Weekly. In the...
Clanchy, Whitehead win 2020 Orwell Prize
10 July 2020
UK author Kate Clanchy and US novelist Colson Whitehead have won this year's Orwell Prizes for political writing and political fiction respectively, reports the Bookseller. Each prize is worth £3000 (A$5435)....
German book sales down 8.3% in year to June
9 July 2020
In Germany, book sales are down 8.3% for the year to June, according to the German Publishers and Booksellers Association. The overall drop in sales represents a recovery from a...
Gardners owner makes Bertrams asset purchase
8 July 2020
The Little Group, owner of UK book wholesaler Gardners, has agreed to an asset purchase of book wholesaler the Bertram Group, which went into administration earlier this year. Books+Publishing understands...
Johnson wins 2020 PEN Pinter Prize
8 July 2020
In the UK, poet and reggae artist Linton Kwesi Johnson has been awarded the 2020 PEN Pinter Prize. Prize judge Claire Armitstead said: ‘Once we had laid our nominations on...
Owusu wins 2020 £10,000 Desmond Elliott Prize
3 July 2020
Derek Owusu has won the Desmond Elliott Prize for first-time novelists for his verse novel That Reminds Me (#Merky Books). Owusu’s book, the semi-autobiographical story of a British-Ghanaian boy called...
Indian writer Pandey named overall winner of 2020 Commonwealth Short Story Prize
1 July 2020
Indian writer Kritika Pandey has been named the overall winner of the 2020 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for her story ‘The Great Indian Tee and Snakes’. Pandey’s story explores forbidden...
Pan Mac and Nosy Crow win at 2020 British Book Awards; ‘Queenie’ wins book of the year
30 June 2020
In the UK, the winners of the 2020 British Book Awards, known as the ‘Nibbies’, have been announced. In the trade section of the awards, Pan Macmillan was named publisher...
Furloughed UK staff return to work
29 June 2020
In the UK, major publishers are planning for furloughed staff to return to work, with most saying they have no plans to make redundancies, reports the Bookseller. As previously reported,...
UK book sales up 30% as bookshops reopen
25 June 2020
In the UK, almost 4 million books were sold in the first six days after bookshops reopened last week, an almost 30% jump on the same week last year, reports...
Macmillan US sets up inclusive management team; CEO steps back
24 June 2020
In the US, Macmillan Publishing will establish a 13-member trade management committee to set goals and objectives for its trade publishers, divisions and departments, reports Publishers Weekly. In a letter...
UK publishing staff share salaries to promote pay transparency
23 June 2020
In the UK, a document inviting publishing staff to share their salaries is circulating in the industry, reports the Bookseller. Nearly 900 staff have entered their salary, experience, ethnicity, sexual...
Bertrams enters administration
22 June 2020
In the UK, wholesaler Bertrams has gone into administration and will be making company-wide redundancies, reports the Bookseller. As previously reported, Bertrams was put up for sale in May after...
US bookshop sales down 65% in April
17 June 2020
According to US Census Bureau estimates, bookshop sales fell 65.3% in April compared to the same month in 2019, reports Publishers Weekly. Physical sales at bookshops fell in April by...
Abulafia wins Wolfson History Prize for ‘The Boundless Sea’
16 June 2020
In the UK, David Abulafia’s The Boundless Sea (Allen Lane)—a history of humankind told through its relationship with the world’s oceans—has won the £40,000 (A$72,670) Wolfson History Prize. Judging panel chair...
Hickey wins Walter Scott Prize for ‘The Narrow Land’
16 June 2020
Irish author Christine Dwyer Hickey has won the £25,000 (A$45,450) Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction for her novel The Narrow Land (Atlantic). Hickey, whose novel explores the marriage of...
