Inside the Australian and New Zealand book industry

Image. Advertisement:

Weekly international >

2025 Wolfson History Prize goes to Durkin’s “Survivors” 

Cover of Hannah Durkin’s 'Survivors'. Wednesday, 3 December 2025
In the UK, historian Hannah Durkin has won the £50,000 (A$100,570) Wolfson History Prize for Survivors: The Lost Stories of the Last Captives of the Atlantic Slave Trade (William Collins), reported the Bookseller.  The...

PRH’s owner posts small gains in third quarter 

The Bertelsmann Corporate Center in Gütersloh. Wednesday, 19 November 2025
Penguin Random House (PRH) was among the 4 operating groups contributing to a 0.8% revenue increase in revenue for parent company German-owned Bertelsmann over the first 9 months of 2025,...

Random House acquires Cherry Lake Publishing Group

Cherry Lake logo. Wednesday, 12 November 2025
In the US, Random House Children’s Books (RHCB), a division of Penguin Random House, has acquired children’s publisher Cherry Lake Publishing Group. According to PW, the sale involves approximately 6000...

UNESCO announces new Cities of Literature

Photo of ols building fronting the river in Gdansk, Poland Wednesday, 5 November 2025
The United Nations’ cultural arm UNESCO has announced 10 new Cities of Literature among its latest 58 Creative Cities. Newly designated as Cities of Literature are Aberystwyth (Wales), Abuja (Nigeria),...

IPA launches Defender Award 

Cover of IPA defender's award brochure Wednesday, 15 October 2025
The International Publishers Association (IPA) has launched the IPA Freedom of Expression Defenders Award. “The freedom to publish sits alongside the freedom of expression and the freedom to read as...

HarperCollins UK CEO resigns 

Wednesday, 8 October 2025
HarperCollins UK CEO Charlie Redmayne has resigned effective immediately, reported the Bookseller yesterday. Group managing director, adult commercial publishing Kate Elton has been named interim CEO. Redmayne was appointed as...

Chapter Ukraine launched 

Wednesday, 1 October 2025
Craft magazine and Chytomo have announced the launch of Chapter Ukraine, an interactive digital platform that ‘offers comprehensive information about Ukrainian books available in translation’. The platform features translations of...

Booker Prize 2025 shortlist announced

Wednesday, 24 September 2025
The shortlist for the 2025 Booker Prize has been announced. Shortlisted for the £50,000 (A$102,449) prize are six titles: Flashlight (Susan Choi, Jonathan Cape) The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny (Kiran...

Trump sues PRH, New York Times

Wednesday, 17 September 2025
US President Donald Trump is suing Penguin Random House (PRH), along with the New York Times (NYT) and several of its reporters for ‘disparagement’, reported Publishers Weekly (PW) yesterday. Among reporters...

S&S CEO to step down, launch Simon Six imprint

a portrait of Jonathan Karp Wednesday, 27 August 2025
In the US, Simon & Schuster CEO Jonathan Karp has announced he will step down to launch and lead a new imprint, Simon Six, reported Publishers Weekly (PW) yesterday. Karp will...

Booker Prize 2025 longlist announced

Booker Prize 2025 longlist spread out on a wood table, next to a cup of tea Wednesday, 30 July 2025
The longlist for the 2025 Booker Prize has been announced. Longlisted for the £50,000 (A$102,449) prize are 13 titles: Love Forms (Claire Adam, Faber) The South (Tash Aw, Fourth Estate)...

France: Tax AI to pay cultural remunerations 

Wednesday, 16 July 2025
In France, a new senate report has suggested taxing artificial intelligence suppliers in order to remunerate the cultural sector, should current strategies fail, reported the Bookseller. Negotiations between AI suppliers...

Marsh appointed inaugural Commonwealth Poet Laureate

Selina Tusitala Marsh Wednesday, 2 July 2025
Selina Tusitala Marsh has been appointed the inaugural Commonwealth Poet Laureate, serving until 31 May 2027, reported BookBrunch. Born in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand, Marsh is of Samoan, Tuvaluan, English,...

Rocket Entrepreneurs Launch SF Publisher 

A portrait of Chris Larmour Wednesday, 18 June 2025
In the UK, Chris Larmour, founder of Europe's orbital space rocket company Orbex, along with Orbex founding investors Martin Coates and John May, has launched Factorial Books, a digital-first publisher...

Kandrusevich, Strotsev awarded 2025 Prix Voltaire 

Nadia Kandrusevich and Dmitri Strotsev Wednesday, 4 June 2025
The International Publishers Association (IPA) has awarded exiled Belarusian Publishers Nadia Kandrusevich and Dmitri Strotsev the 2025 Prix Voltaire, which supports defenders of freedom to publish. Both Kandrusevich and Strotsey were...

British Book Award winners announced 

the cover of Patriot by Alexei Navalny Wednesday, 14 May 2025
The winners of the 35th British Book Awards, also known as The Nibbies, have been announced. The evening included two special awards: an award for Social Impact presented to Kate...

US Library of Congress – further strife 

Wednesday, 14 May 2025
Shira Perlmutter, Register of Copyrights and director of the US Copyright Office, has also been fired by the Trump administration, reported Publishers Weekly (PW). This follows the firing of US Librarian...

BIBF to increase focus on academic publishing 

beijing international book fair logo Wednesday, 7 May 2025
The Beijing International Book Fair (BIBF), running 18–22 June 2025, will increase its focus on academic publishing with a new conference in partnership with the International Association of Scientific, Technical...

UK: Children’s reading report presented to Parliament 

Wednesday, 30 April 2025
In the UK, 'Turning the Page: A Plan to Revive Children's Reading for Enjoyment', a joint Publishers Association/All-Party Parliamentary Group on Publishing report, was launched in Parliament, reports Book Brunch. The...

Carol Shields Prize for Fiction 2025 shortlist revealed 

the logo for the carol shields prize for fiction Wednesday, 16 April 2025
The 2025 shortlist for the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction has been announced. Shortlisted titles are: All Fours (Miranda July, Canongate) Code Noir (Canisia Lubrin, Soft Skull) Liars (Sarah Manguso,...

Brunet wins 2025 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 

A portrait of Marion Brunet Wednesday, 2 April 2025
French author Marion Brunet has won the 2025 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, worth 5 million SEK (A$794,966), reports Publishers Weekly. Judges made note of Brunet's settings, ‘a fiercely pulsating present with...