Book Sense

The Summer 2005 Book Sense Children's Picks, which can be previewed online at news.bookweb.org/read/3426 and which will be arriving in stores this week, incorrectly includes three titles' library edition ISBNs. The titles and correct ISBNs for trade editions are:

"What a fun book this was to read," said Kimberly A. Hughes of Village Bookstore in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, of Chasing Vermeer. "Two sixth-graders, a creative teacher, stolen art, letters written in secret code, and a lot of seemingly unrelated clues had me guessing all along the way." --from the 2004 Book Sense Summer Kids' Picks

The Summer 2005 Children's Book Sense Picks can now be previewed at news.bookweb.org/read/3426. Stores with Book Sense will begin receiving the Children's Picks fliers, which are mailed directly from the printer, during the week of April 24. Additional copies may be requested by sending an e-mail to [email protected].

This list is the result of the extensive participation of independent booksellers nationwide, and Book Sense extends many thanks to all who sent in nominations.

Here's a look at some exciting news about participating BookSense.com member websites:

When Michael Stuppin moved back to his hometown of San Francisco to open Alexander Book Co. with his sister, Bonnie Stuppin, they wanted to provide the city with "something a little different," a general bookstore that filled under-met needs.

Beginning with the June Red and White boxes, all Book Sense mailings are being outsourced to Transport Specialties International, Inc. (TSI), a dedicated mailing house in New Jersey. Book Sense Publisher Partners that plan to include materials in either of the June mailings should not ship them to ABA's Tarrytown address. All materials for June and for subsequent mailings should be shipped to:

Transport Specialties International, Inc.
9 Joanna Court
East Brunswick, New Jersey 08816-2108

For the eight-week sales period ending April 17, 2005, and based on reporting from hundreds of independent bookstores with Book Sense across the country.

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.

To stand out in the current sea of memoirs isn't easy, but with fine writing and a compelling story, Jeannette Walls' debut memoir, The Glass Castle (Scribner), is winning rave reviews.

A writer never knows where he may strike gold. For Jack Hamann -- author of On American Soil: How Justice Became a Casualty of World War II (Algonquin), a Book Sense History Top Ten Pick -- it was at a 1987 Seattle hearing about a proposed expansion of a sewage treatment plant.

On Tuesday, April 12, the American Booksellers Association announced the winners of the 2005 Book Sense Book of the Year Awards. The winners in both adult and children's categories are those titles independent booksellers most enjoyed handselling during the past year, as voted by the owners and staff of ABA member bookstores.

Friday, April 22, is the deadline for nominations for the 2005 Summer Paperback Book Sense Picks. Booksellers have been clear in their feedback to Book Sense that trade paperbacks are crucially important to their sales -- and that this list is an effective tool for a key selling season.

Independent booksellers in the Book Sense marketing program who wish to be a part of the inaugural Quill Awards Nominating Board must respond by e-mail to The Quill Foundation's Ann Binkley at [email protected] no later than Friday, April 15.

Osondu Booksellers is an African-named general bookstore in Waynesville, North Carolina, owned by a woman originally from Massachusetts, who then lived in Maryland and who planned to open a bookstore in Syracuse, New York. Margaret Osondu, who adopted her surname with spouse, Scott, when they married 15 years ago, is very pleased that seven months ago she ended up owning a bookstore in this small town at the eastern entrance of the Smoky Mountains.