BTW News Briefs

NEIBA Seeks Nominations for Rusty Drugan Scholarship

The New England Independent Booksellers Association (NEIBA) is seeking nominations for the Rusty Drugan Scholarship for Emerging Leaders. The scholarship is awarded annually in memory of Wayne "Rusty" Drugan, who was NEIBA's Executive Director from 1992 to 2006.

Applicants must presently be working full-time in a NEIBA member bookstore and have been working for at least a year. Candidates may apply directly for the scholarship or be nominated by others in the book industry. The scholarship includes three nights at the NEIBA Trade Show Headquarters Hotel and two tickets to each meal function. Any booksellers nominating themselves should describe in detail their background, the reasons for their interest in the award, and include a copy of their resume. Any booksellers nominating someone else should indicate in detail why they are nominating this person.

Nominations/applications must include all the following information for both the applicant and the nominator: Name, Store Name, Current Position, and Store Address. E-mail submissions to Nan Sorenson at nan@neba.org. Submissions must be received by June 27, 2008, to be considered.

National Children's Choice Book Awards Announced

On May 13, the Children's Book Council (CBC) in association with the CBC Foundation, announced the winners of the first annual Children's Choice Book Awards at a gala in New York City, hosted by Jon Scieszka, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. Children across the country voted for their favorite books, author, and illustrator at bookstores, school libraries, and at www.BookWeekOnline.com. Close to 55,000 votes were received.

The Children's Choice Book Award winners are:

• Kindergarten to Second Grade Book of the Year: Frankie Stein by Lola M. Schaefer, illustrated by Kevan Atteberry (Marshall Cavendish)
• Third Grade to Fourth Grade Book of the Year: Big Cats by Elaine Landau (Enslow Publishers)
• Fifth Grade to Sixth Grade Book of the Year: Encyclopedia Horrifica by Joshua Gee (Scholastic)
• Illustrator of the Year Award: Ian Falconer, Olivia Helps With Christmas (Simon & Schuster)
• Author of the Year Award: J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Scholastic)

The Children's Choice Book Awards program was created to provide young readers with an opportunity to voice their opinions about the books being written for them and to help develop a reading list that will motivate children to read. The program is a new component of Children's Book Week, the longest running literacy event in the country.

Don Weisberg Appointed President of Penguin Young Readers Group

On May 14, David Shanks, CEO, Penguin Group (USA) announced that Don Weisberg, formerly executive vice president and COO North America at Random House, has been appointed president of Penguin Young Readers Group, beginning May 19. Weisberg has enlisted Barbara Marcus to be strategic advisor for the group. Doug Whiteman, who is currently president of Penguin Young Readers Group, is taking on a new role as executive vice president of business operations, Penguin Group (USA), also effective May 19.

"I'm very pleased that Don Weisberg, who is widely-respected in the industry, is joining our senior executive team at Penguin Group," Shanks said in a statement. "His years of sales, management, and overall operations experience, coupled with his extensive knowledge of the retail and distribution markets, is perfectly suited to advance our Young Readers division to the next level. I am confident that Weisberg's compelling leadership style will also ensure continuity in the division."

Before leaving her post as president of Children's Book Publishing and Distribution and executive vice president for Scholastic Inc., Marcus supervised the publication and release of six out of seven Harry Potter books. She also oversaw the growth of the Scholastic Book Clubs and Book Fairs.

As executive vice president of business operations, Penguin Group (USA), Whiteman will be responsible for working closely with David Shanks on overall business strategy for the corporation, including identifying growth opportunities in such areas as technology and emerging markets. He will also be working on global initiatives and will maintain a day-to-day role in the business affairs of the Young Readers division.

The Best of the Booker Voting Opens to the Public

The shortlist for the Best of the Booker, a one-off celebratory award to mark the 40th anniversary of the Booker Prize, was announced on May 12. The six shortlisted books, chosen from the list of 41 Booker Prize and Man Booker Prize winners, are:

• Pat Barker's The Ghost Road (1995)
• Peter Carey's Oscar and Lucinda (1988)
• J.M. Coetzee's Disgrace (1999)
• J.G. Farrell's The Siege of Krishnapur (1973)
• Nadine Gordimer's The Conservationist (1974)
• Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children (1981)

Voting by the public to choose the Best of the Booker is underway via themanbookerprize.com.