Book Sense

This week, Book Sense and The History Channel present the Autumn 2005 Top Ten Picks About Luminaries in Science, Art, and Politics. The list is based on the nominations of independent booksellers nationwide and is the sixth time Book Sense has compiled a list in association with The History Channel.

Matching the excitement of last year's release of the movie version of The Polar Express will be the November 11 release of the film version of Zathura, also based on a bestselling novel by Chris Van Allsburg. And to add to the opportunities for booksellers to cross promote with the film, Houghton Mifflin will be publishing a number of Zathura movie tie-ins in mid-October, including an early reader, a junior novel, a deluxe storybook, and more.

There are two significant deadlines approaching for Book Sense Picks lists.

Here's a reminder about upcoming Book Sense Picks deadlines -- and a look at deadlines for the 2006 lists. A nomination must be received at ABA by the due date in order for it to be considered for a given list.

Nominations may be sent through a convenient online form at www.bookweb.org/read/6305 or by sending an e-mail to Book Sense Picks Editor-in-Chief Dan Cullen at [email protected].

Aliens & Alibis Books in Columbia, South Carolina, is the joint venture of mother-and-son team Deb Andolino and Gary McCammon. The store, which opened on May 1, 2005, specializes in mystery, fantasy, and science fiction books, both new and used.

Based on sales in independent bookstores with Book Sense nationwide for the eight-week period ending September 18, 2005.

Past Category Bestseller lists are available at www.bookweb.org/read/5677.

Attention Media: Please contact Meg Smith at [email protected] for reprint guidelines for your newspaper or magazine.

Turn down Station Street, a shady side street in quaint-chic Brookline Village, Massachusetts, and you'll see a T-stop to your right, and a large brick warehouse building tucked into the block-long row of shops and businesses to your left.

This week Book Sense announces the 2005 Halloween Top Ten. The list is produced in conjunction with the Association of American Publishers' Get Caught Reading initiative and is based on the nominations of independent booksellers nationwide.

Booksellers in the Book Sense program will be receiving the Halloween Top Ten in the September Red Box.

For a downloadable PDF file of the Halloween 2005 Top Ten, click here.

Reach Out and Read (ROR), the 16-year-old national pediatric literacy organization, has been putting millions of books into the hands, strollers, and even mouths, of babies and preschool children to help make reading a part of every healthy childhood.

Responding to input from booksellers participating in the Book Sense Gift Card Program, this month ABA and Givex announced several cost-cutting, efficiency-enhancing improvements to the program. Changes include a reduction in shipping costs and a consolidation of ACH transfers. In addition, Book Sense has announced that Wizards of the Coast's Dungeons & Dragons-themed gift cards and coordinating presenters will be available this holiday season, and that ABA will be expediting gift card swapping at the fall regional booksellers association shows.

Booksellers should no longer be selling Book Sense gift certificates; they should, however, continue to redeem valid certificates sold before June 1, 2005.

Book Sense will pay 10 cents for each unsold Book Sense paper gift certificate returned to ABA via a traceable manner (e.g., UPS). Certificates should be sent to the attention of Peter Reynolds at ABA, 200 White Plains Rd., Tarrytown, NY 10591. The minimum reimbursement amount for this buy-back is $5, regardless of the number of certificates returned.

Peter Workman launched Workman Publishing Co. in 1968 with one title -- Yoga 28-Day Exercise Plan. Workman has since grown into a mid-size publishing house, which last year published 35 titles that sold over one million copies. In 2002, the company was the recipient of PMA's Special Achievement Award for Excellence in Independent Publishing.

Based on reporting from hundreds of independent bookstores with Book Sense across the U.S. for the eight-week period ending September 4, 2005.

Past Category Bestseller lists are available at www.bookweb.org/read/5677.

Attention Media: Please contact Meg Smith at [email protected] for reprint guidelines for your newspaper or magazine.

Here is the full listing of the October Book Sense Picks, with booksellers' comments, as well as a preview of the month's Notables. Independent booksellers in the Book Sense program will be receiving their October Picks fliers in the September Red Box.

Due to the Labor Day holiday, the reporting deadline for next week's Book Sense Bestseller Lists will be extended for 24 hours. Reporting will begin at 3:00 p.m. EST on Saturday, September 3, and will end at 3:00 a.m. EST on Wednesday, September 7."

The Book Sense Bestseller Lists will be e-mailed on Wednesday, September 7, and the printable PDF will be posted on Bookweb.org during the late afternoon."