NCAC Supports Met’s Refusal to Remove Painting

On Monday, the National Coalition Against Censorship [5] (NCAC) released a statement strongly supporting The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s refusal to remove Thérèse Dreaming, a 1938 painting by Balthus that has been criticized as depicting “the sexualization of a child.”

More than 8,000 people have signed an online petition demanding the removal of Thérèse Dreaming, part of the museum’s permanent collection, in response to “the current climate around sexual assault and allegations that become more public each day.”

“Historically, the female form, both clothed and nude, has been one of the central subjects of art across cultures. It has also generated frequent protests and warnings against its corrupting influence,” NCAC wrote in its statement. “However, attacking art is counterproductive to the open discussion necessary for us to confront the realities of sexual harassment and abuse.”

The anti-censorship organization added that it will continue to support cultural institutions that allow the public to determine for themselves what is and is not “offensive.”

Case of Missing Hong Kong Bookseller Remains Unresolved

Gui Minhai, the co-owner of a Hong Kong publisher who has been held in China for the past two years, was referred to in a recent op-ed in the Denver Post [6] about President Donald Trump’s personal intervention to help free three American college basketball players in China.

In the piece, titled “The True Cost of Trump’s Basketball Intervention in China,” columnist Josh Rogin writes that, “Lost in the celebration and controversy was the fact that Trump ignored all of the other American citizens being held unjustly in Chinese jails — not to mention the human rights and political prisoners the Chinese government holds.” Rogin went on to state that there are about 100 Americans currently being subjected to what advocates call coercive measures in China.

Gui Minhai is the co-owner of Hong Kong’s Mighty Current Media and its bookshop, which publishes and sells books critical of Chinese leaders. Besides Gui, four other men associated with the publisher had previously been detained and were later released. Despite the fact that Chinese authorities say they released him on October 17, Gui’s daughter Angela Gui said on Tuesday that he is still missing and out of contact, according to Clawson News [7].

Last year, American Booksellers for Free Expression (ABFE) created and sold T-shirts to raise funds to support the campaign, led by Angela Gui, to free Gui Minhai.

2018 Independent Bookstore Day Totes Now on Sale

The official 2018 Independent Bookstore Day [8] (IBD) tote bag, designed by award-winning author and illustrator Carson Ellis, is now available to order online.

The tote costs $18 and can be found on Bonfire.com [9]. Among other books, Ellis is the author and illustrator of the Caldecott honor picture books Du Iz Tak? (Candlewick, 2016) and Home (Candlewick, 2015).

The official 2018 IBD T-shirt is also available for sale. [10]

IBD’s Samantha Schoech Wins Writer’s Residency

Independent Bookstore Day Program Director Samantha Schoech is one of two winners of the inaugural A Hotel Room of One’s Own [11]: The Erma Bombeck/Anna Lefler Humorist-in-Residence program, administered by the University of Dayton in Dayton, Ohio.

Schoech, a writer, copywriter, and editor from San Francisco, and Karen Chee, a recent Harvard University graduate working as a comedy writer in New York, were chosen from 401 applications from 44 states, Washington, D.C., and five other countries. They will attend the workshop at the university from April 5–7, 2018, and then spend an additional two all-expenses-paid weeks at the University of Dayton Marriott to work on their books or other comedy projects.

2018 Children’s Book Week Event Location Applications Open

Bookstores, libraries, and schools are invited to become official 2018 Children’s Book Week [12] (CBW) event locations as part of the celebration of the 99th annual Children’s Book Week (April 30–May 6).

Participants will be included in the Children’s Book Week national publicity campaign, and location and event details will be listed on the CBW national event map. In addition, students, patrons, and customers will get to vote in the 11th Annual Children’s and Teen Choice Book Awards, and bookstores can enter a display contest to win books to donate to a local charity.

To participate, interested bookstores, libraries, and schools should sign up online to host a Children’s Book Week story time, activity hour, or author/illustrator event. Participants will receive Book Week posters with activities featuring original art by Jillian Tamaki, access to downloadable resources, access to special event kits from publishers, and a press release template.

Sign up here to become an official event location. [13]

Follett Names New CEO

Follett Corp. has chosen Patrick Connolly to succeed Ray Griffith [14] as president and CEO, the company announced Monday.

Griffith has served as president and CEO of the educational wholesaler and services company since May 2015; he will retire in March 2018. During his tenure, Griffith is credited for leading Follett through a series of acquisitions, including the purchase of Baker & Taylor in 2016.

Connolly will join Follett on January 2, 2018. He most recently worked at the Paris-based management services company Sodexo, where he was CEO of Universities Worldwide, its global business unit supporting the university and K–12 market in 30 countries.

S&S to Distribute Galvanized Media

Simon & Schuster has entered into a sales and distribution agreement with Galvanized Media [15], the company announced Monday.

Galvanized Media is a lifestyle brand founded by author, fitness and health expert, and television personality David Zinczenko, the driving force behind such bestselling books and franchises as Eat This, Not That!; The Abs Diet; and Zero Belly Diet.

Under the agreement, Simon & Schuster will handle worldwide sales and distribution for Galvanized Media’s catalog of books in the fields of health, fitness, diet, and lifestyle effective January 1, 2018. According to Zinczenko, the first titles released by Galvanized Media under this new relationship will be a series of 14-day diet books.

S&S CEO Carolyn Reidy Named PW Person of the Year

Publishers Weekly [16] has named Simon & Schuster President and CEO Carolyn Reidy its 2017 Person of the Year, citing her steady leadership in guiding one of the country’s Big Five trade publishers.

Reidy is finishing up her 10th year as president and CEO, a tenure that included the 2008 recession, publishing’s digital disruption, and a slow-growth sales environment, according to PW.

VitalSource Acquires Intrepid Learning, Teams With eCampus.com

Educational platform VitalSource [17], part of Ingram Content Group, recently acquired the Seattle-based corporate learning technology company Intrepid Learning [18]. The new brand, Intrepid by VitalSource, will feature two complementary learning technology offerings, Intrepid Learn and Intrepid Discover.

VitalSource is also partnering with eCampus.com [19], a virtual bookstore provider for academic institutions, to offer the Vault digital textbook reader, eCampus’ exclusive e-textbook platform. The company will also now be able to leverage VitalSource’s technology to provide publisher-hosted courseware and adaptive learning solutions. 

Sales of Interlink’s The Immigrant Cookbook to Benefit ACLU

Interlink Publishing has published a new cookbook this holiday season called The Immigrant Cookbook: Recipes That Make America Great, [20] with recipes collected and edited by Leyla Moushabeck.

Eighty top immigrant chefs from Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, and Europe have contributed recipes to the cookbook, sales of which will help support the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project.

Interlink, based in Northampton, Massachusetts, is also the publisher of the 2015 cookbook Soup for Syria [21], which contained original soup recipes from renowned world chefs. Sales from Soup for Syria [22] helped support food relief efforts for Syrian refugees.

Find out more about The Immigrant Cookbook here. [23]