Oxford University Press pull Biff & Chip book over “scary” country pages
A book in the popular Biff & Chip children’s series has been withdrawn from sale by Oxford University Press, following complaints that its pages depicting a “scary” country were “no longer appropriate”.… Read more »
Waterstones appeal aims to raise £1m for Ukraine disaster fund
As the conflict in Ukraine intensifies again in the east, and with an estimated 5 million people now estimated to have fled the country, humanitarian aid efforts continue. We’ve been… Read more »
“Old Books Discussed”—ancient article animates attention
We were once again taking a brief break from the page proofs—they will never end!—by scrolling through the digital resources available via the Brooklyn Public Library—our new favorite institution!—when we… Read more »
End of an era: Waterstones to extend high street domination after acquiring bookshop chain Blackwell’s
A 143 year legacy will soon be coming to an end after it was announced this week that Waterstones has bought Blackwell’s, the UK’s biggest independent bookshop chain. We recently wrote… Read more »
“Bookcore” trend boggles; fashion fun?
We were happily working away on some page proof, trying to remember the rules concerning the proper sequencing of front matter, when we received, out of the blue, a missive… Read more »
Miracle on Gower Street: customer pays Waterstones for 1974 books
Take it from me, book shop customers are often a curious lot. There’s the entire-book-readers; the food leavers; spine breakers; letter writers; queue jumpers and, my personal favourite, the “take… Read more »
UK’s first specialist Black book shop saved by crowdfunder
The directors of the UK’s first book shop and publisher dedicated to Black writing, New Beacon Books, have thanked supporters for a “lifeline” after a crowdfunding campaign saved their premises… Read more »
Return of the Rings: Worcester hospice flogs filched fantasies
It’s a storyline that might have come from the mind of J.R.R. Tolkien himself. On December 19 it was reported that a thief had made off with rare first editions… Read more »
Flintshire book shop devastated by fire hails “incredible” public support
An unimaginable loss for “one of the largest online and real bookshops in the North West,” based in Flintshire, UK, has been transformed into a hopeful new beginning, thanks to… Read more »
New scheme aims to support budding booksellers from underrepresented communities
The Booksellers Association (BA) and Bookshop.org launched New Futures this autumn, a programme offering individuals from underrepresented communities across the UK the chance to develop their own bookshop business alongside industry experts.… Read more »