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Around the World: round-up 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
In news from our Around the World blog this week, Adobe unveils a new ebook Internet application; Penguin enters the virtual reality world market; Amazon and AAP object to Google...

Bestsellers this week 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
Springcleaning is in the air ... and it seems the nation's readers are inspired to pull out the dusters and the squeegee mops with Shannon Lush and Jennifer Fleming. Their cleaning bible Spotless,...

Forthcoming events 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
Trade events coming up over the next week, as shown on our events calendar, include: the APA Basic Editing and Proofreading Workshop in Sydney on 2 November, and the Copyright...

RiP Wendy Lowenstein 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
Wendy Lowenstein, oral historian, author and passionate defender of workers' rights, has died in Melbourne from complications of Alzheimer's disease, aged 79. Lowenstein's books include Weevils in the Flour (Scribe),...

Victorian Premier’s Reading Challenge wraps up 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
Another successful Victorian Premier's Reading Challenge has come to an end. The 2006 challenge, which ran from February until the end of August, recorded almost twice as many successful participators...

CBCA national executive on the move 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
The Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) national executive, which is currently based in New South Wales, is coming to the end of its two-year term and will hand over...

Jose to judge new Man Asian prize 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
Australian author Nicholas Jose has been chosen as a judge of the new Man Asian Literary Prize, along with US-based writer Andre Aciman and former Canadian governor-general Adrienne Clarkson. The...

Scott to take on ‘caretaker role’ at Funtastic 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
Following the departure of Ian Ashmore from his position as general manager of the publishing and entertainment arm of Funtastic, the company has announced that Mark Scott, currently general manager,...

Readings wins ‘Age’/D&B business award 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
The Readings book chain has won this year's Age/D&B Victorian Business Award in the retail category, and is eligible for the overall award to be announced later this month. Owner...

Applications open for Unwin Trust Fellowship 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
Applications are now open for the 2007 Unwin Trust Fellowship, the program that allows a member of the Australian book trade to visit the UK for three months to enhance...

Informit adds 100th journal 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
RMIT Publishing's Informit E-library has annouced that it has added its 100th journal.Eureka Street joins 99 other Australian journals on the online service, including BOOKSELLER+PUBLISHER.'The 100th journal online in Informit e-Library heralds...

TitlePage set to launch in NZ 

Tuesday, 31 October 2006
The board of the Australian Publishers Association (APA) has given the go-ahead for the development of a price and availability service for New Zealand booksellers.The service, which will be built on...

Around the World: round-up 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
In news from our Around the World blog this week, Thomas Nelson announces it will be dropping all its imprints; Bertelsmann launches a new digital investment fund; Lonely Planet appoints...

ARC celebrates success 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
The Australian Readers' Challenge (ARC) Certificate Day ceremony was held at Customs House in Sydney on Monday, with NSW governor Marie Bahsir presiding and representatives from many publishing houses in...

RiP John Nieuwenhuizen 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
WBN is saddened to report that John Nieuwenhuizen, a former editor of WBN and Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine, died suddenly last Friday.After working for the ABA, John came to...

‘Jonestown’ is finally in town 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
As expected, Jonestown (A&U), Chris Masters' unauthorised biography of Sydney radio personality Alan Jones, received much media in the lead-up to its release on Monday, with extracts in newspapers over...

Eleanor Curtain commended in Export Awards 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
Educational publisher Eleanor Curtain Publishing received a commendation award as part of this year's Governor of Victoria Export Awards. Company founder Eleanor Curtain was presented with the commendation award at...

Chilvers leaves A&R 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
After establishing the Angus & Robertson Manly franchise territory 14 years ago, Sydney bookseller Sally Chilvers has decided it's time to move on. ‘I set out to build a bookshop...

CAL to make ‘record payments’ to members 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
Australia's Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) has announced that it is adopting ‘a range of strategies to accelerate payments to members in 2006/2007.' The initiatives are designed to enable CAL to...

Bestsellers this week 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
It's out with the old and in with the new. There are four new entries in this week's top 10 bestsellers. True crime makes a splash with Joanne Lee's No...

‘Australian Jihad’ recalled 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
Pan Macmillan has announced a recall of Australian Jihad, a nonfiction account of the Bali bombings and subsequent investigations of Jemiah Islamiah, written by Walkley award-winning journalist Martin Chulov. The...

Springer bids for T&F 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
Science, technical and medical (STM) publishing group Springer has made an approach to buy Informa, the parent company of publisher Taylor & Francis.While the bid is being described by Informa...

ABA conference: sponsorship and exhibition opportunities 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
Plans for the 2007 Australian Booksellers Association (ABA) conference are well underway. The ABA has announced that sponsorship opportunities for the conference are now open and close on 10 November.Bookings...

Coles Myer takeover collapses 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
The takeover bid for retailer Coles Myer by US-based venture capital group Kolhberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) has been abandoned.The Coles Myer board last week rejected a revised KKR bid that...

RiP Eric Newby 

Tuesday, 24 October 2006
Popular British travel writer Eric Newby, whose books include A Short Walk in Hindu Kush and Love and War in the Apennines (both Pan Macmillan), has died of natural causes...

Como line-up announced 

Tuesday, 17 October 2006
The line up of writers attending the 2007 Writers at Como festival has been announced. Conn Iggulden, the British co-author of The Dangerous Book for Boys (HarperCollins) will be a...

Bestsellers this week 

Tuesday, 17 October 2006
While James Patterson's Cross and Michael Connelly's Echo Park battle it out for the top spot, Clive Cussler sneaks into tenth place with the latest novel in the ‘Oregan Files'....

Around the world: Round-up 

Tuesday, 17 October 2006
In news from our Around the World blog this week, Google announces another addition to its book search program, the Quill awards are announced in the US and the first...

Murdoch Books announces new UK structure 

Tuesday, 17 October 2006
Murdoch Books has announced a new structure for its UK operations, following the resignation of its first UK managing director Tim Whale, who had held the position for only 10...