Book Sense

This week, Book Sense announces the Top Ten selections of the 2004 Reading Group Suggestions Book Sense 76. The full list, which will be announced in the coming weeks, is based on the nominations of independent booksellers nationwide.

There are two important Book Sense 76 reminders this week -- both the March/April Book Sense 76 and the Easter/Passover Top Ten have a deadline of January 23. The Easter/Passover Top Ten is the next Book Sense and AAP Get Caught Reading list, and will feature both children's and adult front and backlist titles.

The following letter from ABA President Ann Christophersen of Women and Children First in Chicago was sent to booksellers via e-mail on Wednesday, January 21.

Dear Bookseller:

This past summer in Richland Center, Wisconsin, Jodee Hosmanek was contemplating a career change. She wanted to leave her position as a high school chemistry and biology teacher, but didn't have a game plan. On August 17, she decided she was going to pursue her lifelong dream of owning a bookstore. By August 27, she had bought the building to house it.

On Sunday and Monday, January 11 - 12, ABA's Booksellers Advisory Council (BAC) met with representatives of the ABA Board and senior staff in Miami, Florida, to offer the association guidance on a number of issues important to independent booksellers.

The BAC is composed of 25 members and represents a broad cross-section of views from within the community of independent booksellers. For a complete list of BAC members, click here.

Topics discussed at the two days of meetings included:

All employees of ABA member bookstores -- from staff at the front desk to those in the backroom -- are being asked to vote for the best Book Sense 76 titles of the past five years in adult and children's categories. By casting their ballots, participants will be automatically entered in a contest to win the grand prize of five nights' accommodations and admission to BookExpo America for the next five years or one of four first-place prizes, to be announced.

This week, Book Sense and Givex announced the creation of a Frequently Asked Questions PDF meant to address common questions from booksellers using the WebPOS (Internet) method to process Book Sense Gift Cards.

The FAQ can be downloaded by clicking here.

The first Mountains & Plains Independent Bestseller List, published in a cooperative effort between Book Sense and the Mountains & Plains Booksellers Association (MPBA), debuted this week.

"She's somewhat of a mistake that really worked," said Elisabeth Robinson, referring to Olivia Hunt, the rambunctious and loveable protagonist of her first novel, The True and Outstanding Adventures of the Hunt Sisters (Little, Brown), a January/February Book Sense 76 Top Ten pick and a Book Sense bestseller.

Hardcover History, the partnership of Book Sense and The History Channel promoting programming and reading combinations, will return in March with a great new look. The series, which emphasizes why history matters, breathes life into significant subjects both past and present.

Bookstore owner Dave Simpson may own the oldest bookstore in Contra Costa County, California, but just recently, he's also become owner of three of the newest bookstores in the region. Simpson, who purchased the Lafayette Book Store six years ago, opened three more bookstores in the past four months: The Danville Book Store, opened in September; the Lafayette Used Book Store, opened in October; and the Pleasant Hill Book Store, opened in November.

For the four-week period ended January 11, 2004, based on reporting from hundreds of independent bookstores across the United States.

Attention Media: Contact Kristen Gilligan at [email protected] for reprint guidelines.

Booksellers at ABA member bookstores are voting to choose the best Book Sense 76 titles of the past five years and, in the process, are entering a contest to win the grand prize of five nights' accommodations and admission to BookExpo America for the next five years or one of four first place prizes to be announced. Participation is open to owners and employees of all ABA member bookstores.

In this letter to booksellers, ABA President Ann Christophersen talks about the association's plans to mark the fifth birthday of Book Sense, including a special project to select the best Book Sense 76 titles published during the past five years, a new look for the 76 lists, and changes in White Box mailing procedures.

January 5, 2004

Dear Fellow Booksellers,

Happy New Year!

As part of this year's celebrations of Book Sense at Five, ABA is asking booksellers to help select the best Book Sense 76 titles published during the past five years. Participation is open to all employees of ABA member bookstores, and all participants in the selection process will be entered into a Bookseller Contest with prizes for five booksellers. The grand prize will be free admission and housing at BookExpo America for the next five years.