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Book publishers finally get a reason to party
May 30, 2013

The number of parties has dwindled and there are fewer blockbuster celebrity authors, but the actual business of book publishing looks a little brighter this year.

Book Expo America, which kicks off at the Javits Convention Center today, is designed to bring independent booksellers together so that publishers can hype books they think will be big sellers in the coming months.

Yesterday, the Alfred A. Knopf imprint announced “Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy,” the third book in British writer Helen Fielding’s mega-selling series about the travails of a single woman. The first two books became international sensations in the 1990s

'Underpants' series tops list of challenged books
April 26, 2013

Here’s a list “Fifty Shades of Grey” was destined to make: The books most likely to be removed from school and library shelves in the U.S. The E L James’ multimillion-selling erotic trilogy has placed No. 4 on the American Library Association’s annual study of “challenged books,” works subject to complaints from parents, educators and other members of the public. The objections: offensive language, and, of course, graphic sexual content.

No. 1 was a not a story of the bedroom, but the bathroom, Dav Pilkey’s “Captain Underpants” books (offensive language, unsuited for age group), followed by Sherman Alexie’s prize-winning

Volunteers to Give Away a Half Million Free Books on Tuesday, April 23rd
April 23, 2013

From Kodiak to Key West, Concord to Carlsbad, Grand Forks to Galveston, in 6,200 towns and cities across America, more than 25,000 World Book Night U.S. volunteers will go out and personally hand out a half million free books to new or light readers on one day: April 23, 2013.

Look What We Did… for the 27th Time! New York Book Show celebrates the best of what we do
April 18, 2013

The Guild (formerly called The Bookbinders’ Guild of New York) was formed in 1925 by a group of 35 craftsmen who met to discuss significant developments in bookmaking. Today we are a volunteer organization with membership of more than 500, from the ranks of all type of publishing staff, vendors and freelancers. We sponsor educational trips, hold monthly informational programs and help to raise money for the Literacy Assistance Center. In 20 years we’re very proud to have raised over $320,000 for the LAC.

Last week was our biggest annual event—the 27th annual New York Book Show. Each year entries are submitted from around the country for books published in the last year. Entries include either covers/jackets or complete books, and are separated into categories. Just within “Children’s Trade” we have “picture book”, “young adult”, “pop-up”, “covers and jackets”, etc. Judges who are expert in specific areas volunteer their time and expertise.

Then in the Spring we show off the winners and have a big celebration.

State of America’s Libraries Report 2013
April 15, 2013

Libraries and library staff continue to respond to the needs of their communities, providing key resources as budgets are reduced, speaking out forcefully against book-banning attempts and advocating for free access to digital content in libraries, with a keen focus placed on ebook formats.

Led by the American Library Association (ALA), libraries offer resources often unavailable elsewhere during an economic “recovery” that finds about 12 million Americans unemployed and millions more underemployed. And the library community continues to rally support for school libraries, which seem destined to bear the brunt of federal budget sequestration.

These and other library trends of the past year are detailed in the ALA’s 2013 State of America’s Libraries Report, released today during National Library Week, April 14 – 20.

IPads in the classroom: The right way to use them, demonstrated by a Swiss school. - Slate Magazine
April 15, 2013

The school has an unconventional take on the iPad’s purpose. The devices are not really valued as portable screens or mobile gaming devices. Teachers I talked to seemed uninterested, almost dismissive, of animations and gamelike apps. Instead, the tablets were intended to be used as video cameras, audio recorders, and multimedia notebooks of individual students’ creations. The teachers cared most about how the devices could capture moments that told stories about their students’ experiences in school. Instead of focusing on what was coming out of the iPad …

Chronicle Books Signs First-Time Author from The Great Tumblr Book Search
April 2, 2013

Today Chronicle Books announced that it will publish Paul Laudiero, a first-time author and the grand-prize winner of The Great Tumblr Book Search. Additionally Chronicle and Tumblr are pleased to announce that the contest will be an annual partnership.

The Great Tumblr Book Search kicked off in January and Chronicle received 175 entries in just 45 days. For the past month, editors at both Chronicle and Tumblr read through the proposals. And it was Laudiero’s book idea that caught their eye.

Are You Being Too Nice at Work?
March 29, 2013

As I read Sheryl Sandberg's "Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead," I nodded so hard that I worried my neck would sprain. I noticed after a while that the highlight function on my Kindle was turning every page fully yellow. The takeaway? Succeeding in business—whether that business is a blog, the PTA, or being COO of Facebook—is hard, and nobody can do everything right. But you can try, and you can remain a human being while doing it. My own mom was a classic '70s feminist…

How to Avoid Mobile App Dev Failure
March 26, 2013

Workers and consumers are constantly on their smartphones and tablets these days, so it's no surprise that companies are rushing to put out mobile apps to better serve their employees and customers.

Some companies fail because they produce an app too quickly, which forces them to then make updates along the way based on feedback and functionality. To avoid pushing out a mobile app prematurely, here's a laundry list of things you need to do and do right.