Inside the Australian and New Zealand book industry

Image. Advertisement:

Weekly news >

ASA warns on digital rights 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) has expressed ‘serious concerns' over rights and contractual issues caused by the increasing delivery of digitised content.The ASA's concerns have been prompted by developments...

Amazon launches Kindle e-book reader 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Online retailer Amazon.com has released its long-awaited Kindle e-book reader in the US.The lightweight, slim, hand-held device uses an updated version of the ‘electronic ink' screen first seen on the...

Bestsellers this week 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Former rugby league player Andrew Johns' autobiography The Two of Me has hit the charts this week with a bang. It comes second after Matthew Reilly's Six Sacred Stones in the...

Forthcoming events 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Trade events coming up over the next week, as shown on our events calendar, include: Australian Copyright Council - Law and Practice Symposium, Sydney 22 - 23 NovemberThe Annual Wellington...

RiP Ira Levin 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Ira Levin, the author of many successful novels including Rosemary’s Baby and The Stepford Wives, has died in Manhattan aged 78.

In brief 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Rivers and Siems leave Phoenix to found Teaching SolutionsHaving sold their shares in Phoenix Education to their partner David Stewart, Barney Rivers and Ruth Siems have now founded a new...

Johnston steps down as chair of the Big Book Club 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Stephanie Johnston of Wakefield Press, founding chair of the South Australian Big Book Club, announced her resignation from the position at the Club's AGM last week. ‘I'll remain on the...

‘Strong growth’ for Murdoch Books in Australia 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
Murdoch Books has enjoyed ‘strong growth' over the financial year to June, according to CEO Juliet Rogers. Rogers said this was ‘despite challenges in [the company's] international markets due to...

HarperCollins launches large-print list in Australia 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
HarperCollins has announced it will launch a new large print imprint in January next year. The imprint, HarperLuxe, is intended to ‘provide a more comfortable reading experience.' Featuring a 14-point...

Human Rights awards shortlist announced 

Tuesday, 20 November 2007
The shortlisted titles for this year's Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commision's Human Rights Awards arts nonfiction category have been announced. The shortlisted titles are: Acting From the Heart: Australian...

Attenborough leaves S&S 

Sunday, 18 November 2007
Simon & Schuster Australia MD Jon Attenborough has announced his resignation.Attenborough has headed S&S in Australia since 1987. 'I have decided that it is the right time,' he said in...

Readers Feast announces Crime and Justice festival 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Melbourne CBD bookseller Reader's Feast has announced ambitious plans for a major Crime and Justice literary festival, to be held in Melbourne next July.At a launch earlier today at the...

Bestsellers this week 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
The same two books that were first and second last week in the bestseller charts are up there again--Matthew Reilly's Six Sacred Stones and Patricia Cornwell's Book of the Dead...

Forthcoming events 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Trade events coming up over the next week, as shown on our events calendar, include: Australian Campus Booksellers Association conference, Sydney 14-16 November9th NSW Writers' Centre Australian Publishers and Authors...

RiP Bob Kowalski 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Literary agent Margaret Gee writes: I had known Bob for twenty years and he was a cherished friend and author. He shot to bestsellerdom in Australia with his legendary book,...

RiP Norman Mailer 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Author Norman Mailer, winner of two Pulitzer Prizes for Armies of the Night and The Executioner's Song, has died aged 84.

A better Better Read Than Dead 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
After several months of building--and the loss of some stock when some unexpectedly wet Sydney weather coincided with some roof work--the Better Read than Dead bookshop in Sydney's Newtown has...

CAL announces new model for payments 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
The Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) has announced changes to the way it will distribute payments in the new year. Under CALdirect, a new system to be introduced in mid-2008, members...

Quote of the week 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
‘I’ve been a ghost for the past eighteen months […] It probably pays less per hour than stitching trainers in the Philippines and it’s been the most unrewarding thing I've...

Around the world 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Among the stories added to our Around the World blog in the past week:St Aubyn takes out French prizeCanadians get 'book rage'Ghosts revealedOphrah withdraws book from websiteUK libraries a new...

Aussie cookbooks win Cordon D’Or prizes 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Two Australian cookbooks, both published by Allen & Unwin, have received Gold Ribbon prizes at the 2007 Cordon D'Or Culinary Arts awards. Tolarno Bistro by Ian Hewitson and Bob Hart...

Aussie desert guidebook wins international awards 

Tuesday, 13 November 2007
Australia's Great Desert Tracks Atlas and Guide by Ian Glover and Len Zell (Hema Maps/Wild Discovery Guides) has taken out two major awards at this year's International Map Trade Association conference,...

Chinese author wins first Man Asia prize 

Monday, 12 November 2007
Chinese author Jiang Rong has been named as the winner of the inaugural Man Asia Literary Prize for his novel Wolf Totem (Penguin).The Man Asia prize, worth $10,000, intends to...

White award calms angry poet 

Monday, 12 November 2007
Poet David Rowbotham has been named as the recipient of this year's Patrick White award.The award, worth $25,000, was established by Patrick White in 1974 to honour writers who ‘had...

Over 3000 teens vote for Inky winners 

Monday, 12 November 2007
The State Library of Victoria's Centre for Youth Literature has announced the winners of the inaugural Inky awards, Australia's first teenage choice book prize. The Golden Inky goes to Notes...

NSW Writers’ Centre genre award winners 

Monday, 12 November 2007
The NSW Writers' Centre has announced the winners of its inaugural genre fiction award, supported by New Holland Publishers.First prize went to Maria Simms for The Dead House; second prize...