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Readings Foundation announces first grant recipients 

Thursday, 26 November 2009
Readings managing director Mark Rubbo has announced the first grants to be awarded by the recently created Readings Foundation. The Foundation, officially launched on the occasion of Readings' 40th birthday...

2009 Inky winners announced 

Thursday, 26 November 2009
Where the Streets Had A Name by Randa Abdel-Fattah (Pan Macmillan) is the winner of the $2000 2009 Golden Inky award, voted on by readers of the State Library of Victoria's...

‘Churchill and Australia’ wins Walkley nonfiction award 

Thursday, 26 November 2009
Churchill and Australia (Graham Freudenberg, Pan Macmillan) has won the 2009 Walkley Nonfiction Book Award. The award, announced last Thursday 26 November, recognises ‘excellence in nonfiction literature and long-form journalism'....

Christmas 2009 closing times 

Thursday, 26 November 2009
Unless otherwise indicated, businesses listed are not open on weekends or public holidays. Public holidays include:Christmas Day: Friday 25 December 2009Boxing Day: Saturday 26 December 2009 (VIC and WA)Boxing Day...

Quote of the week 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
‘At Text we still hold firm to that old maxim that bad s-x is like bad pizza--it's never that bad,' Nick Cave's Australian publishing team at Text, on the news that...

Around the world 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Among the many international booktrade stories added to our Around the World blog in the past week:  B&N moves to block investorIs Borders UK on the verge of collapse?Universities boycott...

Rights round-up 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
In rights news this week: SalesNonfiction--UQP has sold French rights to The Kiss of Saddam (Michelle McDonald) to Editions Jean-Claude Gawsewitch/Balland and Polish rights of the same title to Swiat...

In brief 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Readings wins music retailing ARIAReadings Carlton in Melbourne is the winner of the 2009 ARIA Retailer of the Year Award for best independent specialist in Victoria. Other state winners were...

James on Costa Poetry Award shortlist 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Angels Over Elsinore by Clive James (Picador) is on the shortlist for the Costa Poetry Prize, awarded as part of the 2009 Costa Book Awards. The collection was described by...

Wasmuth to leave Leading Edge; Rowe appointed GM 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Jayne Wasmuth has announced that she will step down as general manager of Leading Edge Books. Wasmuth, who said she was leaving to pursue other opportunities, told WBN: ‘It has...

Reid to step down at Pindar NZ 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Custom publisher Pindar New Zealand has announced that managing director Gerard Reid is ‘stepping down from active management of the business', due to ill health. Reid will be replaced in...

‘Bunny Munro’ on Bad S-x Award shortlist 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Nick Cave's novel The Death of Bunny Munro (Text) has been named as a finalist in this year's Bad S-x in Fiction Award. ‘At Text we still hold firm to...

‘Breath’ to be adapted for film 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Film rights to Tim Winton's Miles Franklin-winning novel Breath (Penguin) have been acquired by Australian actor Simon Baker and producer Mark Johnson. ‘Baker, who has been surfing since childhood, will...

HarperCollins announces ‘new area’, staff appointments 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
HarperCollins will establish a new area within the company, charged with ‘finding ambitious innovative solutions', HarperCollins CEO Michael Moynahan has announced. ‘As we pursue growth in an ever-changing market, it is...

‘Bookglobe’ online bookseller launched 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Bookglobe Bookshop, an online bookseller based in Sydney, has been launched. The online store, founded by director John Phillip Harding, is a general bookstore with special categories on religious and...

Ihimaera offers to buy back books 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
New Zealand author Witi Ihimaera (The Whale Rider, Raupo) has offered to buy back all the remaining copies of The Trowenna Sea (Raupo), reports the New Zealand Herald. The offer...

Perth to introduce extended trading hours 

Tuesday, 24 November 2009
The Western Australian government will allow more Perth retailers to extend their shopping hours from January next year. The extended hours will apply to large stores in a so-called ‘tourism...

Bestsellers this week 

Monday, 23 November 2009
High-profile male authors have taken over the charts this week with Matthew Reilly's The Five Greatest Warriors coming in at number one in the Bestsellers, James Patterson's I, Alex Cross...

Forthcoming events 

Monday, 23 November 2009
Trade events coming up over the next week, as shown on our events calendar, include: ABA Victorian branch 2009 Christmas party, Melbourne, 25 November Inky Awards--winners announced, 26 November Guadalajara...

‘WBN’ Christmas closing list–2 December 

Monday, 23 November 2009
Publishers/distributors are asked to advise WBN of their Christmas closing dates by COB Friday 27 November 2009. A full list will appear once only in WBN on Wednesday 2 December, listing each...

On tour 

Monday, 23 November 2009
Authors on tour from November to March 2010: NovemberSusan Duncan, Random House (A Life on Pittwater)Ben Elton, Random House (Meltdown)Danny Buderus, Random House (Talent is Not Enough)Judy Nunn, Random House...

YABBA award winners announced 

Tuesday, 17 November 2009
The winners of this year's YABBA Victorian children's choice book awards have been announced. The winners were: Fiction Years 7-9: Then (Morris Gleitzman, Viking)Fiction Older Readers: Specky Magee And The...

Around the world 

Tuesday, 17 November 2009
Among the many international booktrade stories added to our Around the World blog in the past week:Su Tong wins Man Asia PrizeRandom US sees big increases in ebook salesHarlequin launches...