BTW News Briefs

ABA’s Vlahos Profiled in Booksellers NZ

On Wednesday, August 25, New Zealand’s The Bookseller featured a profile of ABA COO Len Vlahos.

Vlahos is on his way to New Zealand at the invitation of Booksellers New Zealand to present the session “Impact of Digitization on American Booksellers” at the Booksellers NZ Conference in Auckland this weekend.

Although The Bookseller noted that the “U.S. book trade as a whole, and independents particularly,” have been seriously impacted by e-commerce and digital developments in recent years, it said, “Vlahos is an optimist however – where others see problems, he sees opportunities…. To his way of thinking, recent challenges of digital developments and the emergence of Google as a player are opportunities to democratize the book industry.”

The Bookseller also took a look at ABA’s “highly popular” Winter Institute, ABA senior staff working at member stores during the holidays, and more.

Watch for a report on Vlahos’ experiences in an upcoming edition of BTW.

NAIBA to Honor Cohen & Meade With Legacy Award

The New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association will honor Carla Cohen and Barbara Meade of Washington, D.C.’s Politics & Prose with its Legacy Award. The presentation will be made at the Annual Awards Banquet at the NAIBA Fall Conference on Tuesday, September 21, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

NAIBA established the Legacy Award in 2004 to recognize individuals whose body of work contributed significantly to the realm of American arts and letters. Past winners include Paul Auster, Joyce Carol Oates, Pete Hamill, Morgan Entrekin, Anne Tyler, and Louis Auchincloss.

Also at the banquet, NAIBA will recognize Bob Werner of Macmillan for his tireless work as a sales rep and the winners of its annual Book of the Year Awards.

Midwest Booksellers Choose Award Winners

The Midwest Booksellers Association (MBA) has announced the winners of the 2010 Midwest Booksellers’ Choice Awards, which recognize authors from and books about the region. The MBA region encompasses Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

This year’s winners are:

• Fiction: A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore (Knopf/Vintage)
• Nonfiction: The Girls From Ames: A Story of Women & a Forty-Year Friendship by Jeffrey Zaslow (Gotham Books/Penguin)
• Poetry: The Chain Letter of the Soul: New and Selected Poems by Bill Holm (Milkweed Editions)
• Children’s Picture Book: Otis by Loren Long (Philomel/Penguin)
• Children’s Literature: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater (Scholastic Press)

An honor book was also named in each category.

The 2010 Midwest Booksellers’ Choice Awards will be presented formally on October 1, 2010, during the 2010 Midwest Booksellers Association Trade Show in St. Paul, Minnesota.

PNBA Introduces Northwest Book Lovers

The Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association has created Northwest Book Lovers, a new blog featuring PNBA member stores, libraries, area books and authors, and all things literary in the Northwest.

PNBA noted that the blog “champions a behind-the-scenes indie store kind of vibe” and is “for anybody who cares about book culture in the Northwest.” The regional is encouraging stores to promote the new blog to their customers and beyond.

The new site features national headlines, a store directory, and the interactive “One Nightstand,” where anyone can comment on what they’re reading. The “Regional Reprints” portion of the blog highlights news by or about PNBA member stores and local authors and links back to store blogs and websites.

Glenn Goldman Scholarship Deadline September 1

Applications for the Glenn Goldman Booksellers Scholarships, administered by the Southern California Independent Booksellers Association, are due by September 1. This year, the fund will award two scholarships: one to SCIBA’s October 23 Authors Feast & Trade Show and one to ABA's Winter Institute from January 19 - 21, 2011 in Arlington, Virginia.

An application and details are available on the SCIBA website.