BTW News Briefs

Baker & Taylor Reported to Be Up for Sale

The private equity firm Willis Stein is selling Baker & Taylor, the nation's second largest book wholesaler, to equity group Castle Harlan for $455 million, according to PW Daily. The deal is expected to close later this year. No dramatic changes at the company are expected, and PW reports that Richard Willis will remain as B&T president and CEO, with the rest of his senior management team in place.

Castle Harlan's various holdings currently do not include anything in the distribution or publishing fields.

U.S. Book Production Plummets 18 Percent

On May 9, Bowker, a provider of bibliographic information, released statistics on U.S. book publishing compiled from its Books In Print database. Based on preliminary figures from U.S. publishers, Bowker is projecting that U.S. title output in 2005 decreased by more than 18,000 to 172,000 new titles and editions. This is the first decline in U.S. title output since 1999, and only the 10th downturn recorded in the last 50 years. It follows the record increase of more than 19,000 new books in 2004.

According to Bowker, only the very large academic, professional, and trade publishers managed to publish close to the number of new titles and editions that they did in 2004. Output from the smallest publishers dropped by more than 7 percent, while new titles from the small-to-medium and medium-to-large publishers declined by 10 percent and 15 percent respectively. The number of new titles released by the largest general trade houses decreased 4.7 percent, to 23,017. University presses increased their title output 1.8 percent to 14,746, their largest annual total since 2000. Additional charts and statistics can be found at www.Bookwire.com by clicking "Book Industry Statistics."

Who Cares About Poetry? Ninety Percent of American Readers

In a newly released report, Poetry in America, the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) at the University of Chicago presented the results of a study evaluating American attitudes toward poetry. Commissioned by the Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine and one of the largest literary organizations in the world, the research finds that the vast majority (90 percent) of American readers highly value poetry and believe it enriches the lives of those who read it. "This study shows that America is more than ready to resume its love affair with poetry," says John Barr, president of the Poetry Foundation. "It contradicts the assumption that poetry must be a marginalized art form; on the contrary, readers believe that poetry adds pleasure, depth, and understanding to the lives of those who read it."

The research indicates that Americans feel that poetry significantly contributes to their understanding and appreciation of life, and that people who read poetry lead more engaged and satisfying social lives than those who don't. In addition, fully two-thirds of respondents believe that society would benefit if people read more poetry. The report, which is available free of charge at www.PoetryFoundation.org, is intended to assist educators, publishers, and arts organizations interested in building the audience for poetry.

Packer Wins 2006 New York Public Library Award

On May 10, the New York Public Library Helen Bernstein Book Award for Excellence in Journalism was presented to George Packer for his book The Assassins' Gate: America in Iraq (Farrar, Straus and Giroux). The award, which includes a $15,000 cash prize, is given annually to a journalist whose work brings clarity and public attention to important issues, events, or policies. "The Assassin's Gate provides a balanced and nuanced view of the forces that led to the war in Iraq and its human and political consequences," said Library President Paul LeClerc.

Avalara Certified for Streamlined Sales Tax Project

On May 8, 2006, Avalara announced the release of Streamlined Sales Tax-certified editions of its sales tax automation solution, AvaTax. Under SST, businesses will be able to outsource sales tax compliance functions to Avalara, which will determine and calculate the tax, then report and remit taxes to the states on behalf of those businesses. As an incentive to participate, businesses that register to collect sales tax under SST rules and adopt Avalara's automated sales tax calculation service will receive protection from audit, protection from liability for mistakes in calculation, may qualify for amnesty, and in many cases, the service will be free of charge to the company using AvaTax.

Random House Acquires Triumph Books

On May 8, the Random House Publishing Group announced that it has acquired sports book publishing Triumph Books. Triumph Books will become an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group, retaining its name and the distinctive editorial focus of its publishing program. Its entire full-time staff, spanning editorial, production, publicity, marketing, and sales, will continue to be based in Chicago.