Jamaican author McPherson wins Commonwealth Short Story Prize
28 June 2023
Jamaican writer Kwame McPherson has been named the overall winner of the 2023 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for his story ‘Ocoee’. ‘Oocee’ interweaves Caribbean folklore and stories from African-American history....
Gilbert withdraws Russian-set novel from publication
14 June 2023
US author Elizabeth Gilbert is pulling her novel The Snow Forest from publication, in response to a backlash from Ukrainian readers unhappy about the book being set in Russia, reports...
UK Publishers Association sets up AI taskforce
7 June 2023
In the UK, the Publishers Association (PA) has formed an AI taskforce to help the industry navigate new developments in artificial intelligence technology, reports the Bookseller. PA CEO Dan Conway...
Shortlists announced for James Tait Black prizes
31 May 2023
In the UK, the shortlists for the James Tait Black prizes have been announced. The shortlisted titles in each category are: Fiction Bitter Orange Tree (Jokha Alharthi, trans by Marilyn...
Gospodinov, Rodel win 2023 International Booker
24 May 2023
The novel Time Shelter by Bulgarian author Georgi Gospodinov, translated by Angela Rodel and published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson, has won the £50,000 (A$93,900) International Booker Prize. Time Shelter was chosen...
TikTok owner flags move into publishing
10 May 2023
TikTok owner ByteDance has filed a US trademark application for a book-publishing entity called 8th Note Press, reports Business Insider. The company has also begun recruiting staff for publishing roles,...
B&N workers at flagship store launch union drive
3 May 2023
In the US, workers at the flagship Barnes & Noble (B&N) shop in New York City’s Union Square have requested a union election with the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store...
UK survey of debut authors finds lack of support from publishers
26 April 2023
In the UK, a survey by the Bookseller has found more than half of debut authors (54%) report that publishing their book had a negative effect on their mental health....
International Booker 2023 shortlist announced
19 April 2023
The shortlist for the 2023 International Booker Prize, worth £50,000 (A$90,950), has been announced. The shortlisted titles, chosen from a longlist announced in March, are: Still Born (Guadalupe Nettel, trans by...
Istanbul bookshop wins LBF Bookstore of the Year 2023
12 April 2023
The London Book Fair (LBF) has announced the winners of its annual International Excellence Awards. The winners in each category, chosen from shortlists announced earlier this month, are: Bookstore of the year...
Book Depository to close
5 April 2023
UK-based online bookseller the Book Depository will close on 26 April. In a letter to vendors, the Book Depository said it will be winding down its business over the coming...
Hachette UK in talks with Welbeck staff about job losses
29 March 2023
Hachette UK is in consultation with Welbeck Publishing Group staff following its acquisition of the independent publisher last November, reports the Bookseller. A number of jobs are at risk. A...
Mikhail wins Waterstones Children’s Book Prize
22 March 2023
In the UK, Nadia Mikal has been named the £5000 (A$9160) overall winner of the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize for her debut novel, The Cats We Meet Along the Way...
International Booker 2023 longlist announced
15 March 2023
The longlist for the 2023 International Booker Prize, worth £50,000 (A$90,950), has been announced. The longlisted titles are: Ninth Building (Zou Jingzhi, trans by Jeremy Tiang, Open Letter) A System...
Anderson wins Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award
8 March 2023
US author Laurie Halse Anderson has won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, worth five million SEK (A$707,300), reports the Bookseller. Judges praised Halse Anderson’s ‘richly expressive novels for young people’...
Women’s Prize 2023 longlist announced
8 March 2023
The longlist for the 2023 International Women's Prize for Fiction has been announced. The 16 titles longlisted for the award are: Black Butterflies (Priscilla Morris, Duckworth Books) Children of Paradise...
Chinese market down 12% in 2022
8 February 2023
Overall book sales in China decreased 12% in 2022 according to Beijing OpenBook, reports Publishing Perspectives. While sales via short video ecommerce, such as on TikTok and other platforms, were...
Miller wins FT Book of the Year for ‘Chip War’
7 December 2022
In the UK, Chip War: The Fight for the world’s most critical technology (Chris Miller, S&S) has won the 2022 Financial Times (FT) Book of the Year Award. In Chip War, Miller unpicks the...
‘A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth’ wins Royal Society Science Book Prize
30 November 2022
In the UK, Henry Gee has won the 2022 Royal Society Science Book Prize for A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth: 4.6 billion years in 12 chapters (Picador),...
Taylor, Zmith win 2022 Polari Prizes
16 November 2022
In the UK, writers Joelle Taylor and Adam Zmith have won the 2022 Polari Prizes for work that explores the LGBT experience, reports the Bookseller. Taylor won the £2000 (A$3642) Polari Prize...
Judge releases full decision blocking PRH acquisition of S&S
9 November 2022
In the US, federal court judge Florence Pan’s 80-page written decision blocking Penguin Random House’s (PRH) acquisition of Simon & Schuster (S&S) has been published, reports Publishers Weekly. Pan found...
Court blocks PRH acquisition of S&S
2 November 2022
Bertelsmann, the parent company of Penguin Random House, will appeal a ruling by a US federal court blocking its proposed acquisition of Simon & Schuster (S&S). In a two-page order,...
HarperCollins US staff vote to strike
19 October 2022
Representatives for unionised HarperCollins US employees will go on strike on 7 November, reports Publishers Weekly. Employees have been negotiating for 11 months for a new employment agreement but have...
US print sales down 4.8% YTD
12 October 2022
In the US, unit sales of print books were down 4.8% in the first nine months of the year compared to the same period in 2021, reports Publishers Weekly. According...
National Book Award Finalists announced
5 October 2022
In the US, the finalists for the 2022 National Book Awards have been announced. The shortlisted titles are: Fiction The Rabbit Hutch (Tess Gunty, Knopf) The Birdcatcher (Gayl Jones, Beacon)...
FT Business Book of the Year Award shortlist announced
28 September 2022
In the UK, the shortlist for the 2022 Financial Times Business Book of the Year Award has been announced. The shortlisted books are: Dead in the Water: Murder and fraud...
Spotify US unveils audiobook catalogue
21 September 2022
In the US, audio streaming platform Spotify has unveiled its catalogue of 300,000 audiobook titles, reports the Bookseller. Audiobooks on Spotify will sit alongside the platform’s music and podcast catalogues...
Booker Prize 2022 shortlist announced
7 September 2022
The shortlist for the 2022 Booker Prize has been announced. The six books shortlisted for the £50,000 (A$85,510) prize are: Glory (NoViolet Bulawayo, Viking) The Trees (Percival Everett, Influx) Treacle...
HarperCollins global revenue up 10%; profits hit by higher costs
10 August 2022
HarperCollins global revenue grew 10% in the financial year ending 30 June. Parent company News Corp reported the publisher’s full year revenue was up US$206 million (A$296m) to US$2.2bn (A$3.1bn)...
Booker Prize 2022 longlist announced
27 July 2022
The longlist for the 2022 Booker Prize has been announced. The 13 books longlisted for the £50,000 (A$86,650) prize are: Glory (NoViolet Bulawayo, Viking) Trust (Hernan Diaz, Picador) The Trees...