Live From BEA -- Day 2

Friday, June 3 -- Day 2 of BookExpo America at New York City's Jacob Javits Convention Center was a busy mix of business and pleasure. The trade show floor opened for business, and in places the aisles became so crowded they were nearly impassable. Schedules were full as well. Many booksellers began the day at the Children's Book & Author Breakfast, shared lunch with favorite authors at the Book Sense Picks Author Lunch, and ended the day at the celebration of the spirit of independent booksellers -- ABA's Celebration of Bookselling. Friday was also the day for ABA members to address association business at the Town Hall and Annual Membership meetings.

ABA's Ninth Annual Celebration of Bookselling

Booksellers and other industry professionals attending ABA's Celebration of Bookselling were treated to a very special event hosted by author and multitalented performer Al Franken. Franken is a bestselling author, an Emmy Award-winning television writer and producer, a Grammy-winning comedian, and the host of The Al Franken Show on Air America Radio.

Always a high point of BEA programming, this year's Celebration, which was sponsored by Putumayo World Music, featured the presentation of the 2005 Book Sense Book of the Year Awards to Robert Kurson (Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II, Random House) for Nonfiction; to Susanna Clarke (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, Bloomsbury) for Fiction; to author Blue Balliett and illustrator Brett Helquist (Chasing Vermeer, Scholastic Press) for Children's Literature; and to author Doreen Cronin and illustrator Betsy Lewin (Duck for President, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers) for Children's Illustrated.

In accepting his award Kurson told booksellers "how honored and how grateful I am to all of you.... I can't tell you what it means to me that you got behind this book to handsell it. When I first started I didn't even know the word 'handsell.'" Kurson went on to say that thousands of fans had written him to say that their independent bookseller had put the book in their hands and had insisted that they read it.

Susanna Clarke told the full house, "It's a great honor to receive this award. I'm particularly thrilled knowing [Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell] was voted for by independent booksellers, and I know that's not the only thing I have to be grateful for from them. Like Robert Kurson, I had never heard the word 'handsell.' I know how much success Jonathan Strange owes to independent booksellers for telling readers about it. For that I thank you."

Presenting the awards in both of the children's book categories was last year's winner of the Book Sense Book of the Year Award for Children's Literature, Christopher Paolini. Paolini, the author of Eragon: The Inheritance, Book I and the upcoming Eldest (both Knopf), was not able to receive his award in person last year. He enthusiastically applauded all eight of this year's children's honor books and presented the 2005 Book Sense Book of the Year Award for Children's Literature to Blue Balliett and illustrator Brett Helquist.

Balliett told the audience that this award was "one of the most wonderful things that has happened" in a year of many wonderful experiences. "Meeting so many of you [booksellers] and seeing what a difference you make in the lives of children" has been a tremendous pleasure, said Balliett. Illustrator Helquist told the audience he had had a difficult time learning to read "grown-up" books and was "grateful that you [booksellers] gave the award to a book with pictures."

Illustrator Betsy Lewin accepted the Children's Illustrated award and noted that author Doreen Cronin, as the mother of a three-month-old, was not able to attend the evening event. She expressed her appreciation for the award and said, "I am really honored to be in your company."

The Celebration also featured a special presentation by ABA and the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) to Rep. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in recognition of his work in defending reader privacy. ABA COO Oren Teicher introduced Rep. Sanders, "the champion of reader privacy and, I daresay, the booksellers' best friend in the U.S. Congress."

In his speech, Sanders thanked ABA Board member Linda Ramsdell ("from that great metropolis of Hardwick, Vermont") and ABFFE President Chris Finan for their work in the battle to amend Section 215. He went on to "congratulate" all the booksellers at the event "for the extraordinary efforts you're making ... to educate those people who come to your stores, and the American people, that in the United States of America, people can read, and must be able to read, without worrying if the government is looking over their shoulders."

Sanders noted, "This is a very difficult time in our history in regards to the fight to protect civil liberties, the fight to protect basic Constitutional rights, and the fight to protect freedom of expression." He added that booksellers "all have to understand that this is not just [the Patriot Act's] Section 215, this is not just booksellers and librarians, the problem is much broader than that. In America today, in my view, we have the most secretive administration in the history of this country."

Pledging "we are not going to give up [our] Constitutional rights without a fight," Sanders exhorted booksellers to continue their efforts to fight for readers' rights.

ABA President Mitchell Kaplan acknowledged Book Sense partner Putumayo World Music for sponsoring the event and for bringing Colombian recording artist Marta Gomez to entertain. Kaplan also expressed the association's thanks to Levenger, which once again, donated the gifts for the Book Sense Book of the Year finalists and winners; to Newmarket Press, which in September will publish Book Sense Best Children's Books: Favorites for All Ages Recommended by Independent Booksellers -- the second in their series of Book Sense Best Books; and to ABA's over 140 Publisher Partners, representing almost 800 separate publishing enterprises, for their continued support of the Book Sense program. "Our Partners ... together with hundreds and hundreds of you are working together to put into the hands of our customers -- the books we love. And, because of what each of you do everyday, independent bookstores are once again being recognized as a vital way of connecting great books with passionate readers. That alone is something to celebrate!" said Kaplan.

Steve Bercu, co-owner BookPeople of Austin, Texas, was also honored at the Celebration with the presentation of the Publishers Weekly Bookseller of the Year Award. Publishers Weekly Rep of the Year Charlie Boswell of Heinecken & Associates also accepted his award at the event.

The Book Sense Author Lunch

Bookseller, author, and host of the Book Sense Picks Author Lunch Betsy Burton and Gerry Byrne, chair of the Quills Literacy Foundation, the sponsor of the lunch.

Booksellers from stores with Book Sense came together with more than 50 authors and illustrators whose books they have chosen as past or present Book Sense Picks at a joyful Book Sense Author Lunch, emceed by bookseller -- and recent Book Sense Picks author -- Betsy Burton of The King's English in Salt Lake City, Utah. Gerry Byrne, chairman of The Quills Literary Foundation, which sponsored the lunch, began the program by welcoming all the booksellers and authors in attendance and sharing with them news about the inaugural Quill Awards, which will be presented at a gala event this October. Before acknowledging the many authors in attendance, Burton extended thanks to Levenger, Tools for Serious Readers, which once again provided gift packages for this year's Book Sense Book of the Year Award winners and Honor Book authors and illustrators. Steve Leveen, president and co-founder of Levenger, whose book The Little Guide to Your Well-Read Life is a June Book Sense Pick, received a round of applause in acknowledgment of the company's generosity.

Among the Book Sense Picks authors and illustrators in attendance were all of this year's Book Sense Book of the Year winners and a number of honor book recipients, who expressed their thanks to independent booksellers.

Robert Kurson, Book Sense Book of the Year Nonfiction winner, acknowledges booksellers at the Picks Author Lunch.

"Up until last year I'd never been to the U.S.," said Susanna Clarke, Fiction winner for Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Bloomsbury). "Last autumn, I came twice for a tour, and I visited many independent bookstores and met many independent booksellers. I was continually impressed with the warmth, friendliness, encyclopedic knowledge, and infectious enthusiasm that was passed on from the booksellers to the book buyers. The authors appreciate it, publishers appreciate it, and the readers appreciate it. Thank you very much indeed."

Katherine Hannigan, author of 2005 Children's Literature Honor Book Ida B ... and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World (Greenwillow) told the audience, "Until recently I was only a book buyer and not a book writer. After going on tour to independent bookstores, I've seen how many booksellers are talking to grown-ups and kids about the book. Thank you so much."

Book Sense Book of the Year Honoree Carlos Ruiz Zafon at the Picks Author Lunch.

And Carlos Ruiz Zafon, author of The Shadow of the Wind (Penguin Press hardcover and Penguin Books trade paper) an Honor Book in the Adult Fiction category, noted, "The real heroes of the success of The Shadow of the Wind ... have been the booksellers. You're the real heroes in the story and in real life."

Betsy Lewin, illustrator of Duck for President, winner in the Children's Illustrated category, said, "I can't tell you how much I appreciate the hard work you do, and I know you appreciate your work as much as I do, and that's the place to be."

ABA's Town Hall Meeting

ABA President Mitchell Kaplan, outgoing Vice President Suzy Staubach, and incoming Vice President Russ Lawrence at the Town Hall Meeting.

The Town Hall meeting provided for a spirited give and take, with the main topics of discussion being the issue of damaged shipments from publishers, sales tax e-fairness, publishers selling direct, and Associated Health Plans (AHPs). ABA President Mitch Kaplan of Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida, chaired the informal meeting, designed to allow booksellers to ask questions and share views on any association-related topic.

Dean Avery of Ariel Booksellers in New Paltz, New York, kicked off the meeting with a question regarding e-fairness. While he stressed that he didn't expect ABA to solve the dilemma of large chain stores not collecting sales tax for online sales "single-handedly," he wanted to know what the association was doing to help in the effort.

ABA's Teicher fielded the question and noted that ABA is one of hundreds of organizations that make up the E-Fairness Coalition, which is working to urge the governors of the 45 states that collect sales tax to start enforcing the collection of sales tax for online purchases.

Teicher also updated booksellers on the California Board of Equalization's (BOE) internal audit of Borders.com, and most recently, Barnesandnoble.com. In both cases, he reported, the staff of BOE recommended that the two online retailers had nexus in the state of California due to their affiliation with their respective bricks-and-mortar counterparts. He added that, once a ruling is final in either or both cases, it could result in a domino effect and give the other 44 states impetus to collect sales tax for online sales.

Sara Pishko of Prince Books in Norfolk, Virginia, brought up the issue of damaged shipments from publishers and other booksellers concurred with her that this is a significant problem that should be addressed. ABA's Director of Special Projects David Walker responded that this is something ABA is aware of and is an issue "we are focusing on."

Kaplan pointed out that booksellers should make it a point to let Walker know anytime there is a problem like this and to send as much evidence as possible. "We as an association need to do a good job soliciting this from you so we can approach publishers in an organized way -- we need to hear from you," he said.

Matt Miller of Tattered Cover in Denver, Colorado, brought up the issue of rising health insurance, and Teicher updated booksellers on the AHP front, reporting that there is a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives and in the Senate that would enable small businesses to band together across state lines through bona fide trade and professional associations to purchase affordable health packages for themselves and their employees.

ABA's Annual Membership Meeting

The ABA Board convenes at the Annual Membership Meeting.

Following the Town Hall, ABA Board members, staff, and bookseller members adjourned next door for the Annual Membership Meeting, where ABA President Mitchell Kaplan began the meeting with some reflections on the past year. "I think in many ways the [association] is working on all cylinders and at the highest levels," said Kaplan, who noted, however, that there is still much to be done and that he and the ABA Board and staff were committed to redoubling their efforts on behalf of independent booksellers. "We have a remarkable staff, [the association] is doing okay financially, but we need continued input from members as much as we can," said Kaplan. "The benefit of being involved is being able to interact with your fellow booksellers."

Kaplan also acknowledged the contributions of outgoing Board members Neal Coonerty of Bookshop Santa Cruz in Santa Cruz, California, and Karl Pohrt of Shaman Drum Bookshop in Ann Arbor, Michigan, of whom he said, "They have given immeasurable service, they have integrity, and they have always strived to do what's right for the association.... Neal will take on any job.... And Karl has been the conscience and soul of the ABA Board."

Following Kaplan, Suzy Staubach of UConn Co-op in Storrs, Connecticut, and chair of ABA's Nominating Committee, presented the 2005 election results. She reported that two new members had been elected to the Board -- Michael Tucker of Books Inc. in San Francisco and Collette Morgan of Wild Rumpus Books for Young Readers in Minneapolis; Mitch Kaplan had been certified by ABA members for a second year as ABA president; and Russ Lawrence, who was elected to a second three-year term on the Board, had been certified as vice president. Staubach also reported that, although membership in the association was down this past year in the categories of Regular Bookstore, Associate, and Auxiliary members, a hopeful sign was an increase in the number of Provisional members, which was up to 124 from 119 the year before.

ABA CEO Avin Mark Domnitz then took the floor to present a year-end review of the association's accomplishments. He began by describing the many educational offerings developed by the association over the past year in response to input gathered from booksellers and how these courses were tested at various regional forums and bookseller association trade shows. Domnitz pledged that these offerings "are only going to get deeper." However, Domnitz reiterated Kaplan's comments about the need for input from members. "We welcome input from all of you," he told booksellers in attendance.

Domnitz then led the audience through the various programs of the association that were designed to meet the goals of ABA's strategic plan. Along the way, he encouraged booksellers to participate in the ABACUS study, which he noted was a perfect example of booksellers helping themselves by sharing valuable information and creating benchmarks; to use the booksellers forums on BookWeb to communicate with, and learn from, fellow booksellers; to sign up with ABA's new partner Constant Contact for easy e-mail management; to nominate to the Picks lists and to sign up to become nominators for the Quill Awards. Regarding the Quills, Domnitz explained that in order to be recognized in the book industry, "we must participate."

Domnitz concluded with a report on the financial health of the organization, which he termed as "rock solid."

The "American Booksellers Association, Inc. and Subsidiaries Consolidated Financial Statements and Schedules -- September 30, 2004 and 2003 (With Independent Auditors' Report Thereon)" are accessible to ABA bookstore members on BookWeb. For a downloadable PDF format, click here.

Domnitz's complete Year-End Review PowerPoint presentation will be available on BookWeb next week.

Bookseller Favorite -- The Children's Book & Author Breakfast

Friday morning, the 27th annual Children's Book & Author Breakfast filled the Special Events Hall of the Javits Center with the many voices of Jim Dale, the lies of Lemony Snicket, the wit of Pam Munoz Ryan, and the creative passion of hundreds of independent booksellers.

Presented in cooperation with the Children's Booksellers and Publishers Committee (a cooperative committee of ABA, the Association of Booksellers for Children, and the Children's Book Council), the popular event featured the presentation of the Lucile Micheels Pannell Awards to BookPeople of Austin, Texas, and to Reading Reptile of Kansas City, Missouri. Honorable mention was given to Wonderland Books and Toys of Rockford Illinois. In his acceptance speech, Pete Cowdin, co-owner of Reading Reptile, created an audible frisson with an ardent critique of the current state of children's book publishing. He concluded with a presentation to future winners of the award of a homemade "Flat Stanley" Cup.

Master of Ceremonies Jim Dale, the Grammy Award winner known for his work on the Harry Potter audiobook series and Around the World in 80 Days (Listening Library), introduced Daniel Handler, the legal, literary, and social representative of Lemony Snicket, the author of A Series of Unfortunate Events (HarperCollins Children's Books) and Pam Munoz Ryan, author of Nacho and Lolita (Scholastic Press), who described the rewards of writing for children through a series of heartfelt, hilariously truthful letters from her readers. Dale concluded the breakfast with a reading from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

BookSense.com and Book Sense Gift Card Users Groups

About 50 people attended the informative BookSense.com Users Group gathering moderated by BookSense.com Director Len Vlahos, who outlined a number of key developments in the works. Following computer hardware and software problems during 2003's holiday season, Vlahos explained, new system upgrades were carried out in 2004. And more technical changes are to come: ABA is moving its servers on June 10 to a new location three miles from the association's headquarters. "So your sites will be down that day and probably much of June 11," he told the group. Things will inevitably become more cost effective system-wise for the program, he added. Meanwhile, BookSense.com has also implemented the use of the CVV code -- the last three digits on the back of credit cards that helps protect against fraud.

Vlahos also discussed ABA's new partnership with Constant Contact -- a company that provides services to manage e-mail marketing campaigns. Constant Contact allows booksellers to collect site visitor e-mail addresses and interests, to create and send e-mail newsletters and promotions quickly, to target e-mails to specific audiences, and to manage and track e-mail lists. The program gives members a variety of templates to create e-mail newsletters, he said.

Booksellers offered input on both the BookSense.com and the Constant Contact programs. Kelly Justice of The Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia, offered some suggestions about BookSense.com's Affiliate Program page, which she thinks needs to be revised so the language is more user-friendly. Another bookseller expressed concern that the newsletter portion of her website accepts only 4,000 characters. Ways to bump up the number are being investigated, Vlahos said. Overall, the discussion confirmed the merits of BookSense.com, while acknowledging there are ways to improve it. "We think we have the best search capabilities available to independent booksellers," Vlahos said, "but we also think it can be better."

If Friday morning's Book Sense Gift Card Users Group, led by Jill Perlstein, ABA marketing director, proved anything, it was that gift card participants are extremely passionate about the program. At the hour-long session, attendees' questions and comments regarding the program came fast and furious -- and while many booksellers had questions or concerns about certain aspects of the program, the general consensus was, despite some minor growing pains, the gift card program has been extremely successful.

Perlstein provided a quick summation of the Book Sense Gift Card Program's remarkable growth since inception. She also provided an update on the Harry Potter gift card and reported that there are about 20,000 "out in the marketplace."

After the report, Perlstein opened the floor to questions and comments. Many questions related to activating the cards via the Internet, reusing the cards, and how gift card redemptions were tracked -- especially when a card was sold at one store and then used at a different bookstore. "If a card is sold for $100, you keep it just as if you had sold paper," she said. "The only time that money gets moved [from the original bookstore to the store that redeemed the card] is if it gets redeemed at another store." However, ABA COO Oren J. Teicher interjected that statistics bear out that most gift cards are redeemed at the store in which they are bought.

A few attendees commented that gift cards had significantly increased sales at their stores and had the added benefit of reducing paperwork. And while participants were happy that the program recently introduced new "Happy Birthday," "Happy Holidays," and "Congratulations" gift cards, most seemed to agree with one user's comment that the program needed to come up with an "edgier" design that appealed to 15- to 25-year-olds, since that is the age group that uses gift cards more than any other. --By Dan Cullen, David Grogan, Rosemary Hawkins, Jeff Perlah, Karen Schechner, Nomi Schwartz