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Book News

The Philosopher Fish wins oddest book title prize
The Philosopher Fish: Sturgeon, Caviar, and the Geography of Desire has been crowned the winner of the Diagram prize for the oddest book title of the year. The book, by Richard Adams Carey, traces how the caviar industry has changed. In a public vote on the shortlisted titles, The Philosopher Fish won 27%, representing the […]
Crown Publishing Group acquires Compendium
The Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House, has acquired Compendium, the publisher of illustrated books, journals, and notecards. At Crown, Compendium will become a standalone imprint under Ten Speed Press. "Compendium will retain its distinct editorial identity and continue to lead the creation and promotion of its portfolio, which includes more than […]
Mubi moves into book publishing with Mubi Editions imprint
Mubi, the film distributor, production company, and streaming service founded in 2007 by Efe Cakarel, will launch a publishing arm, Mubi Editions, next April, focusing on titles on cinema and the arts. Based in London and New York and led by Daniel Kasman, VP of editorial content at Mubi, the imprint will publish two to […]
How digital innovation both strengthens and threatens the book business
On Nov. 18, 2022, PW published a report analyzing a database of 1,300 publishing startups, almost all of which were founded since Amazon launched the Kindle some fifteen years earlier. As soon as it was published, it was out-of-date: two days later, on Nov. 20, 2022, OpenAI unveiled ChatGPT, and since then the number of […]
Writers condemn startup's plans to publish 8,000 books next year using AI
Writers and publishers are criticising a startup that plans to publish up to 8,000 books next year using AI. The company, Spines, will charge authors between $1,200 and $5,000 to have their books edited, proofread, formatted, designed and distributed with the help of AI.
TikTok owner ByteDance to publish print books
ByteDance, the company that owns TikTok, will begin publishing print books in February. The company already publishes ebooks through its imprint 8th Note Press, but will begin selling physical copies in book shops early next year.
Florida moves to dismiss publisher lawsuit over book bans
Attorneys for the state of Florida have asked a federal judge to toss a closely watched book banning lawsuit filed by six major publishers, the Authors Guild, students, parents, and several bestselling authors. In a 25-page brief, filed on November 15, the state argues that the plaintiffs lack standing to bring the suit, which challenges […]
Percival Everett wins National Book Award for fiction with retelling of Huckleberry Finn
Percival Everett has won the $10,000 National Book Award for fiction, one of the US's most prestigious literary prizes, for James, his acclaimed reimagining of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Microsoft launches imprint that aims to be faster than traditional book publishing
Microsoft has launched a new book imprint with the aim of printing faster than traditional publishers. Named after an Intel microprocessor, 8080 Books will publish titles focused on technology, science and business.
IBPA and PubWest unite to become one association
Members of the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) and the Publishers Association of the West (PubWest) have voted unanimously to combine into a single entity this week. PubWest held its vote on November 13, and IBPA voted on November 19, to approve the new arrangement, which goes into effect July 1, 2025.