Short news items from the world of book publishing:
10/09/2026
âThreshing Dayâ Has the Biggest Debut of the Year to Date
In one week, Rebecca Yarros's romantasy series companion title is the third-bestselling book of the year, selling 857,802 print copies, per Circana BookScan.10/08/2026
Media Coalition Wins Inaugural IPA Freedom of Expression Defenders Award
The U.S.-based nonprofit legal organization was honored for its longstanding resistance to the erosion of First Amendment rights at a ceremony at the Frankfurt Book Fair.10/08/2026
Turkeyâs Avesta Wins AAP International Freedom to Publish Award
Focused on Kurdish literature and founded by Abdullah Keskin, Avesta is the first publishing house to receive the award twice, in honor of its resistance to decades of state repression.10/07/2026
Kate Napolitano Joins Little, Brown as Executive Editor
Napolitano joins the Hachette Book Group division from Atria Books, where she served as editorial director of nonfiction. At Little, Brown, she will continue to focus on nonfiction.10/06/2026
James Patterson, Arnold Schwarzenegger to Team on Thriller
Denise Roy at Little, Brown acquired North American rights to The Protector, which marks Schwarzeneggerâs fiction debut. The novel, set for October 2027, centers on âa Catholic priest and military veteran new to a small parish plagued by violence.â10/06/2026
Authors Equity to Publish Book by James Clear, NASAâs Artemis II Crew
The Atomic Habits author (pictured) will team with the four astronauts to âtranslate the lessonsâ of their mission. Madeline McIntosh acquired North American rights from Lisa DiMona at Writers House and Cait Hoyt at CAA, for a fall 2028 release.10/05/2026
Christine Edwards Joins Rizzoli as VP, CCO
Edwards (l.), formerly SVP of sales at Abrams, has been tapped to succeed Jennifer deForest Pierson (r.), who will transition from chief commercial officer to emeritus CCO after 25 years with the art book publisher.10/05/2026
Bookstore Customer Traffic on the Rise
After plunging during the pandemic, customer foot traffic at bookstores has steadily increased, according to an analysis by Placer.ai, a location analytics firm. Barnes & Noble has had the largest improvement with visits up 33.6% since 2019.10/05/2026
Seven Stories Signs Paul Auster Biography
Dan Simon acquired world rights, excluding France, Spain, and Germany, to The Mechanics of Reality: Paul Austerâs Life and Work by Jennifer Bartlett (pictured) from Jessica Craig at Craig Literary. A fall 2029 release is planned.10/02/2026
Elena Hershey Up at Doubleday
A 15-year veteran of Penguin Random House, Hershey has been promoted to senior director of publicity for Doubleday and Pantheon, succeeding Michael Goldsmith, who departed for Little, Brown on Monday, in the role.10/01/2026
Copper Canyon Launches W.S. Merwin Imprint
The Washington-based nonprofit poetry press will launch Merwin Conservancy Books, a partnership with a nonprofit they co-founded, in 2027, with a collection of the two-time Pulitzer Prize winnerâs ecological writings and poetry.09/30/2026
Media Group Slams DOJ Fair Use Finding
The News/Media Alliance expressed its support of the New York Times and other publishersâ suit against OpenAI and Microsoft, after the U.S. Justice Department stated that the AI firmsâ scraping of copyrighted materials is protected under fair use.09/29/2026
Penguin Press Picks Up Sebastian Mallaby Book on Anthropic CEO
Scott Moyers took North American rights to the as-yet-untitled book, which builds on âmeaningful first-person accessâ to Dario Amodei to explore the challenges of AI, from Chris Parris-Lamb of the Gernert Company. A pub date has not been announced.09/29/2026
David Underwood to Receive Voice of the Heartland Award
The longtime Penguin Random House regional sales director for the Midwest has been recognized by MIBA and GLIBA for his contribution to bookselling in the Great Lakes and Midwest regions.09/28/2026
Joyful Reading Company, NASA Partner to Bring STEM Series to Schools, Libraries
The ed-tech entity and the space agency have teamed up to offer their Astrobiology Graphic Histories series on the Comics Plus digital reading platform.09/23/2026
PEN/Faulkner Foundation Executive Director to Step Down
Gwydion Suilebhan will depart the Washington, D.C.âbased foundation, which administers the PEN/Faulkner Award, PEN/Malamud Award, and PEN/Hemingway Award, on November 15, after more than seven years of leadership.09/23/2026
Harlequin Wraps Nationwide Bookmobile Tour
Last month, the romance imprint brought an âimmersive romance experienceâ to 10 Walmart parking lots across the country, in celebration of the centennial of Route 66, and distributed more than 1,000 free books.09/23/2026
Knopf Nets Essay Collection by Ian McEwan
John Freeman at Knopf acquired U.S. rights to Between Books, the Booker Prize winnerâs first volume of nonfiction, from Peter Straus at RCW Literary Agency, for publication in May 2027.09/23/2026
Clover Press Resurrects Marvel Masterworks
The publisher has launched a crowdfunding campaign to relaunch the storied line of archival superhero comics reprints with a whole new look.09/22/2026
IYL Announces 2026 White Ravens
The International Youth Library has released its 40th annual recommendation catalogue, the White Ravens, honoring outstanding new publications in international childrenâs and YA literature.09/21/2026
First Book, Kwame Alexander's One Word at a Time Partner on 'Story Showdown'
The National literacy nonprofits are teaming up on a free virtual game show to promote the joy of reading among young people.09/18/2026
The Word Appoints Rowena AlegrĂa as Executive Director
Denver-based literary nonprofit The Word, A Storytelling Sanctuary has appointed the media professional to lead its efforts supporting disabled, queer, and BIPOC writers.09/17/2026
Ali Hazelwood Sets First Audible Original
Bad in Bed, a full-cast audiobook from the romance author, will release on Amazonâs Audible on October 22, just weeks after the debut of Prime Videoâs adaptation of Hazelwoodâs The Love Hypothesis.09/17/2026
Slowburn Takes Four More from Brynne Weaver
Hayley Wagreich and Sierra Stovall at Zandoâs romance imprint won world English rights to two duologies by the author of the Ruinous Love trilogy in an eight-figure deal, brokered by Kimberly Whalen at the Whalen Agency. The first title is set for 2028.09/17/2026
Viking Penguin Picks Up Beth Browerâs Hit Self-Published Series
Allison Dobson landed U.S. rights to 13 novels in the Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion series, which Viking said has sold more than 1 million copies. Georgina Capel, who has an eponymous agency, handled the deal. Volumes 1â8 will release in November.09/17/2026
Two of Fallâs Biggest Book Festivals Announce Lineups
The Brooklyn Book Festival will feature Edwidge Danticat and Maggie Haberman as part of its programming later this month, while the Texas Book Festival is bringing Pulitzer Prize winners Hernan Diaz and Daniel Kraus to Austin in November.09/17/2026
Tara Westover Returns to Random House for Second Memoir
Andy Ward at Random House netted U.S. rights to Brothers and Sisters, which reckons with the fallout from the publication of Westoverâs hit debut memoir, Educated, from Deneen Howell at Williams & Connolly. Release is set for April 2027.09/17/2026
ALA Announces Banned Books Week Honorary Chairs
The American Library Association has named authors Bess Kalb and Tony Weaver Jr. as honorary chairs for the annual event, while student advocates Marshall Romero and Azeemah Sadiq will serve as honorary youth chairs.09/16/2026
Graywolf Unveils New Logo
The St. Paul, Minn.âbased publisher, which has also overhauled its website and brand identity, said the new graphic reflects its focus on âbooks with teeth,â per an announcement.09/16/2026
Coco Mellors Sets Second Novel at Ballantine
Sara Weiss acquired North American rights to Grenade from Mollie Glick at CAA, for publication in April 2027. The novel follows a 34-year-old filmmaker as she spends three days in Paris for the premiere of her first feature film.09/15/2026
Harper Lands Quentin Tarantinoâs âCliff Boothâ Novelization
Noah Eaker acquired North American rights to the filmmakerâs second novel, The Adventures of Cliff Booth, based on the upcoming Once Upon a Time in Hollywood spinoff film. Tracy Fisher at William Morris Endeavor handled the deal.09/15/2026
Dan Levy Up at Hachette
Levy, formerly VP of data intelligence for Hachette Book Group, has been promoted to SVP and chief data officer across both Hachette Book Group and Hachette UK, and will report to group chief information officer Brendan Goss.09/14/2026
U.K. Childrenâs Media Conference to Be Held During LBF
The annual CMC is relocating from Sheffield to London next year, and will take place March 16â17, as part of the 2027 London Book Fair.09/14/2026
Tordotcom Signs âWickerâ Author Ursula Wills
The publisher will release e-book and audio editions of the short story, soon to be a major motion picture starring Olivia Colman and Alexander SkarsgÄrd, in October, followed by a new story collection by Wills, releasing in all formats in April 2027.09/14/2026
Finn Butterfield Appointed Associate Manger for ABFE
Butterfield, who has been with the American Booksellers Association for six years, will succeed Philomena Polefrone, who recently moved to PEN America, in helping run the ABAâs advocacy arm, the American Booksellers for Free Expression.09/11/2026
Distribution Deals for the Week of September 11, 2026
Asterism Books signs nine indie presses, Hachette Book Group partners with Flame Tree and Welbeck Publishing Group, and more.09/11/2026
Kristin Hannah Sets Next Novel, âThe Fireâ
Jennifer Enderlin at St. Martinâs Press acquired U.S. and Canada rights from Andrea Cirillo and Rebecca Scherer at the Jane Rotrosen Agency. The book is Hannahâs first in three years, after the mega-besteller The Women.09/10/2026
Salman Rushdie to Receive NBF Lifetime Achievement Award
The author will receive the National Book Foundationâs Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters at this yearâs National Book Awards ceremony, in honor of his writing and free speech advocacy.09/10/2026
Rise Literary Taps Diana Ventimiglia
The hybrid publisher has enlisted Ventimiglia, most recently executive editor at Hachette Book Groupâs mind-body-spirit imprint Balance, as publisher. Prior to that, she was executive editor at mind-body-spirit publisher Sounds True.09/10/2026
Springer Nature Updates AI Policy
The professional and scholarly publisherâs new policies support transparency and informed assessment of the use of AI, while acknowledging that many forms of AI-assisted activity areâŻnow routine parts of the scholarly publishing process.09/08/2026
Perri Klass to Receive National Book Foundationâs Literarian Award
The longtime national medical director of child literacy nonprofit Reach Out and Read will be presented with the honor for outstanding service to the American literary community at the 77th annual National Book Awards in November.09/08/2026
ILP Promotes Michael Barra to CEO
Estate management firm International Literary Properties is elevating Barra to chief executive across the Americas, the U.K., and Europe, as studios and streamers increasingly seek out âaudience-tested adaptations over original programming.â09/08/2026
âThe Librariansâ Wins Emmy Award
Kim A. Snyderâs film about the role of library workers in the national battle over book bans won the Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking.09/08/2026
Ignatz Awards Announce 2026 Nominees
Black Arms to Hold You Up and The Ephemerata are among the nominees for this yearâs awards honoring small-press and self-published comics.09/04/2026
Global 50 CEO Talk to Recognize Tonies
At the event, presented by Bookwire at the Frankfurt Book Fair, Tonies CEO Tobias Wann will discuss how the company has grown into a leading interactive audio platform for children.09/04/2026
Dolly Parton Books Reenter Bestseller Charts
The legendary performerâs death sparked renewed interest in titles inspired by her life and work, including a cookbook cowritten with her sister, her scrapbook-style memoir, and her Little Golden Book biography.09/03/2026
Third Place Books Establishes Literary Foundation
Robert Sindelar (l.), co-owner of the beloved Seattle-area bookstore, has announced the launch of a donation-supported program to provide books for young readers. Becky Walsh (r.) will manage programs and outreach.09/03/2026
IMLS Announces Library Grant Awardees
Almost 300 libraries have been awarded fiscal year 2026 competitive federal grants by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.09/02/2026
PRH Taps Amazon Publisher for Audio Division
Chris Werner, who formerly oversaw Amazonâs audiobooks program, including Brilliance Publishing, is taking on a newly created VP role at Penguin Random House Audio focused on developing new voices and partnerships.09/01/2026
Keeperton Taps Kate Roddy as Senior Acquisitions Editor
Roddy previously helped launch Sourcebooksâ Cosmo Reads imprint, as well as Abramsâs first commercial fiction imprint, akaStory. She joins the publishing house, founded in 2024 by Australian romance author T L Swan, this month.News Brief Archive
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