Charles Nurnberg

The nation's top bookseller is following through on a five-year plan to build up it's fledgling publishing business. Barnes & Noble spent $100M to buy Sterling Publishing, a New York publisher of special interest books, in December. The 53-year-old publishing house produces cooking, gardening, crafts, hobbies, games, and sports titles. The deal is part of B&N's strategy to expand publishing revenues from 3% of sales today to over 10% in the next five years, says Larry Zilavy, CFO of Barnes & Noble in New York. Sources at leading independent imprints are concerned about B&N's growing publishing effort. They're worried the retailer will give its