Wentzville School Board reverses its decision on banned book
A banned book will be available to high school students here after the Wentzville School Board reversed its decision in the face of criticism and a class-action lawsuit. The board voted 5-2 on Friday...
View ArticleRussian publishers sign open letter decrying invasion of Ukraine
Over the weekend, several hundred Russian publishing professionals issued a public condemnation of the invasion of Ukraine. Many Russian publishers have also stood together to criticize Putin's...
View ArticleAmazon to close all bookstores
After opening its first bookstore with much fanfare on November 3, 2015, this week Amazon confirmed a report from Reuters that it is closing all of its physical bookstores, as well as its 4-star and...
View ArticleTexas Library Association forms coalition to battle book bans
The Texas Library Association has announced the formation of a grassroots coalition, Texans for the Right to Read, to "amplify and unify the voices of librarians, educators, parents, students,...
View ArticleAny Weir's Project Hail Mary, read by Ray Porter, wins Audiobook of the Year
March 4, 2022, NEW YORK, NY – Tonight, the Audio Publishers Association (APA) announced the winners of the 2022 Audie Awards®, the premier awards program recognizing distinction in audiobooks and...
View ArticleAssistant principal fired for reading children's book "I Need a New Butt!"...
When a guest who was scheduled to read to second-graders over Zoom this month didn't show up, Toby Price, the assistant principal at a Mississippi elementary school, improvised. Price's boss at Gary...
View ArticleBook the Vote: writers, booksellers and libraries collaborate to register...
Writers for Democratic Action is launching Book the Vote, with the aim of registering more voters, particularly in battleground states, before the November elections. The effort will take place in...
View ArticlePenguin Random House creates banned books resources hub
Penguin Random House has created a Banned Books Resources Hub that includes tools, materials and information that can help people and organizations fighting book bans including resources for teachers,...
View ArticleNational Book Critics Circle Award Winners
The winners of the 2021 National Book Critics Circle Awards were announced last night. The NBCC Awards include seven awards for books and three for reviewers. You can see all seven book winners on...
View ArticleThe Free Speech and First Amendment Debate
Shelf Awareness provides a useful overview of the free speech and First Amendment debates currently roiling the USA: In the last week, two pieces in the New York Times have explored or touched on the...
View ArticlePoll finds public broadly opposes book banning efforts
By large majorities, American say they oppose recent efforts to remove books from schools and libraries, and say they trust in librarians to make appropriate collection decisions. The news comes from...
View Article'Freedom Libraries' aim to transform prisons, 500 books at a time
The signature Freedom Library created by the MacArthur fellow, poet and lawyer is now on display at the National Building Museum, offering people for the first time a chance to see libraries just like...
View ArticleFor Colin Kaepernick, writing Is another form of activism
Publishers Weekly spoke with social justice icon and former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick about his debut picture book, 'I Color Myself Different,' and writing as an extension of...
View ArticleOprah Winfrey named 2022 PEN/Faulkner Literary Champion
Oprah Winfrey has been selected as the 2022 PEN/Faulkner Literary Champion, an annual commendation that recognizes a lifetime of devoted literary advocacy and a commitment to inspiring new generations...
View ArticleCongress to hold hearing on book bannings in schools and libraries
Maryland Congressman Jamie Raskin, chairman of the Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, plans to hold a hearing to examine the wave of attempted book bannings in schools and libraries...
View Article'Unparalleled in intensity'– 1,500 book bans in US school districts
More than 1,500 book bans have been instituted in US school districts in the last nine months, a study has found, part of a rightwing censorship effort described as "unparalleled in its intensity"....
View ArticleJack Higgins, author of "The Eagle Has Landed", dies aged 92
Henry Patterson, the bestselling novelist who wrote the The Eagle Has Landed, has died aged 92. The writer died at his home in Jersey surrounded by his family, his publisher HarperCollins said....
View ArticlePrint book sales fall 9% in first quarter 2022 after 29% increase in 2021
Unit sales of print books fell 8.9% in the first quarter, which ended April 2, from the same period in 2021, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. The decline was expected, as first-quarter sales in...
View ArticleAuthors and booksellers mobilize for midterm voters
Writers for Democratic Action (WDA), an organization of some 2,600 authors (and counting), is mobilizing its membership in a national campaign called Book the Vote. WDA will facilitate nonpartisan...
View ArticleMeet the 1,300 librarians racing to back up Ukraine's digital archives
Over the past month, a motley group of more than 1,300 librarians, historians, teachers and young children have banded together to save Ukraine's Internet archives, using technology to back up...
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