BTW News Briefs

BookPeople Named PW's 2005 Bookseller of the Year

This week, Publisher's Weekly announced that BookPeople in Austin, Texas, was named PW's 2005 Bookseller of the Year. PW noted that "among recent distinctions [BookPeople] helped spearhead the 'Keep Austin Weird' campaign and hosted a book party for a book about a murder committed by a former general manager. The store is distinguished in less-weird ways too, such as by its outstanding staff training, events, community involvement, and merchandising."

Young People's Poetry Week is April 11 - 17, 2005

Young People's Poetry Week, an official part of National Poetry Month, will take place from April 11 - April 17, and its goal is to focus those who work with children and young adults on the world of poetry. Now in its seventh year, Young People's Poetry Week is celebrated around the country in schools, libraries, bookstores, and homes.

The Children's Book Council (CBC), the official sponsor of Young People's Poetry Week, provides an extensive list of online resources for teachers, librarians, booksellers, parents, and others who work with children and young adults. The CBC website at www.cbcbooks.org includes ideas for poetry readings, reproducible poetry starters and crossword puzzles, printable lists of poetry books for kids, and printable Q&As with Nikki Grimes and Jane Yolen.

Furthermore, CBC creates materials designed to help communities plan a Young People's Poetry Week celebration of their own. The 2005 Young People's Poetry Week Kit includes a poster and postcards by children's book artist Karen Barbour (illustrator of Marvelous Math: Poems) and a bookmark featuring an original poem by children's book author and poet Nikki Grimes (Bronx Masquerade). These materials are available for purchase through the CBC Online Store at www.cbcbooks.org. The Children's Book Council sponsors Young People's Poetry Week in collaboration with the American Academy of Poets, sponsor of National Poetry Month; and the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.

International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award Finalists

Finalists for the IMPAC Literary Awards were announced last week in Dublin, Ireland. The contest, the largest and most international of its kind, involves libraries from all over the world and is open to books written in any language. This year, nominations were made by 185 library systems in 129 cities from 51 countries. The winner of the 100,000-euro prize will be announced on June 15.

Among the finalists is The Known World by Edward P. Jones (Amistad Press), which won the 2004 Pulitzer Prize and was a Book Sense Top Ten September/October 2003 pick. For more information, go to http://www.impacdublinaward.ie/