Industry News

Booksellers celebrated the inaugural Independent Bookstore Day on May 2, and early reports indicate that sales were up at 80 percent of responding stores, compared to the first Saturday of May 2014.

The results of balloting by the bookstore members of the American Booksellers Association to elect a new president, vice president/secretary, and three directors to serve on the ABA Board are now official.

To assist booksellers in advocating for minimum wage policies that take into account the economic realities of independent retailing, ABA has created the Minimum Wage Legislative Tool Kit.

Canada’s Indigo Books looks to expand to U.S.; Macmillan partners with BitLit on e-book bundling; Lerner to distribute Hutton Grove; Skyhorse announces promotions, reorganization

On Wednesday, May 27, in conjunction with BookExpo America, Reed Expositions will be hosting the BEA Bloggers Conference, a day packed with education and networking opportunities.

On April 25, Tamzin Malone and her husband, Ted, opened Main Street Books, a general bookstore with a special focus on science fiction and fantasy, in a 2,300-square-foot storefront in Lafayette, Indiana’s historic district.

On Friday, May 29, at BEA, Carol Fitzgerald, president of ReadingGroupGuides.com, will emcee a speed-dating session designed to give booksellers, librarians, bloggers, and book group leaders a sneak peek at upcoming titles ideal for book group picks.

For the first annual nationwide celebration of Independent Bookstore Day, this Saturday, May 2, indie bookstores in cities and towns across the country will feature book-related activities, special promotions, prizes, and signed prints and literary merchandise from well-known authors created exclusively for the day.

Suzy Staubach to leave UConn Co-op; Maine Coast Book Shop & Café on the market; Literary Hub highlights Parnassus, Brazos

Court strikes down ban on prisoner speech; National Endowment for Humanities announces new grant; 2015 Edgar winners announced; Lambda Literary selects Emerging Writer Award winners; James Beard Foundation names award winners; Booksellers on judges panel for 2015 Kirkus Prize; Nevada writers win Maureen Egen Writers Exchange Award; President of HarperCollins Children's Books to retire 

The American Booksellers for Free Expression has joined the National Coalition Against Censorship, the Association of American Publishers, and others in reaffirming their support for Charlie Hebdo. In recent days, prominent American literary figures have criticized the French satirical magazine for cartoons that they believe are anti-Muslim.

On Tuesday, the Louisiana House Ways & Means Committee held a hearing on affiliate nexus bills that would require remote retailers to collect and remit sales tax in the state. Testifying in support of the bills was ABA member Tom Lowenburg of Octavia Books.

Publishers are offering specials on 10 adult titles and 10 children’s titles chosen by panels of booksellers from across the U.S. as the top debuts of the summer/fall 2015 season. Featured titles include adult fiction, middle grade, and YA publishing between June and October 2015.

A recent update to Google’s search algorithm privileges mobile-friendly websites by ranking them higher in search results on mobile devices. While this may impact searches for some bookstore websites, affected businesses should take a considered approach rather than rushing to accommodate the change.

ABA’s 2015 Celebration of Bookselling & Author Awards Lunch at BookExpo America will begin a half hour earlier than previously announced.