BTW News Briefs

Landmark Dartmouth Bookstore Seeks New Owners

Owners of the Dartmouth Bookstore, a 132-year-old Hanover, New Hampshire, business, are negotiating with several parties interested in purchasing the landmark store. The store discontinued its original practice of selling textbooks to Dartmouth College students about a year ago, and has been striving to rework its layout and product mix in light of increased competition from Internet sales and nearby chain bookstores.

The store has been owned by members of the Stebbins family since 1883, but longtime store proprietor Phoebe Storrs Stebbins died in March 2002, leaving the bookstore as part of her estate. Ann Stebbins Cioffi and her husband David Cioffi, the store’s general manager, are seeking buyers with the ability and enthusiasm to restore Dartmouth Bookstore to its past prominence. "Hanover’s got to have a good bookstore," Cioffi told BTW. "Our first priority is to do right by our employees; second is to Hanover; and third, to Dartmouth College."

Pacific Northwest Book Award Winners Announced

The Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association (PNBA) has announced the winners of its 2004 book awards. Independent booksellers from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Alaska chose six titles by Northwest authors to receive special recognition.

The awards will be presented at the 38th PNBA Awards Banquet, which will be held on March 19 at the PNBA's spring trade show at the Seattle Airport Hilton.

The winners are:

• Hawk's Rest: A Season in the Remote Heart of Yellowstone by Gary Ferguson (National Geographic Adventure Press )
  
• Cool As I Am by Pete Fromm (Picador)
  
• Bold Spirit: Helga Estby's Forgotten Walk Across Victorian America by Linda Lawrence Hunt (University of Idaho Press)
  
• Devil in the White City by Eric Larson (Random House)
  
• Set This House in Order: A Romance of Souls by Matt Ruff (HarperCollins)
  
• Jarhead by Anthony Swofford (Scribner)
  

For more information on this year's PNBA winners, click here.

Newsstand Sales Decline Again

Magazine newsstand sales, which dropped sharply for the first six months of 2003, dipped again in the second half of 2003, as reported by Women's Wear Daily. According to official figures released Monday, February 23, by the Audit Bureau of Circulations, 319 out of the 472 magazines it tracks reported newsstand sales declines, the article noted. Additionally, combined newsstand sales fell 5.9 percent (3.3 million copies), which does not include new titles reporting sales for the first time.

Consumer Confidence Drops in February

According to the Associated Press, consumer confidence fell in February due to concerns over jobs. The Conference Board reported that its consumer confidence index dropped more than 9 points, to 87.3, after a rise in January to a revised reading of 96.4, AP noted. While analysts expected a decline, the index came in significantly below their predicted forecast of 92.3. "Consumers began the year on a high note, but their optimism has quickly given way to caution," Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board's Consumer Research Center told AP. "Consumers remain disheartened with current economic conditions, and at the core of their disenchantment is the labor market."

Best Self-Improvement Books of the Year Announced

On Monday, February 23, the year's best self-improvement books were honored at the New York City Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society's eight annual "Books for a Better Life Awards" benefit, held at the Millennium Hotel Hudson Theatre in Manhattan. The event raises vital funds for research and programs for people in New York City with multiple sclerosis.

Some of the award winners were:

• Escape from Slavery, by Francis Bok, with Edward Tivnan, St. Martin’s Press, in the Suze Orman First Book Award category;
  
• Honor Lost, by Norma Khouri, Atria Books, in the Inspirational Memoir category; and
  
• Seeing Lessons, by Tom Sullivan, Wiley, in the Motivational category.
  

To see a full list of award winners, click here.