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Catherine Coulter's First #1 New York Times Mass Market Fiction Bestseller Leads Strong Week for Berkley/NAL
Elda Rotor and Dan Sanicola Lead the Successful Launch of Penguin Enhanced eBook Classics
"Penguin has set the bar for ebook quality... *this* is the ebook experience we've been wanting." —Amazon customer"
This spring, Elda Rotor, Executive Editor of Penguin Classics, and Dan Sanicola, Digital Manager, led the successful launch of the Penguin Enhanced eBook Classics Series. Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen was the first title to be released. The eBook, which debuted at #6 on Amazon's Kindle chart the first week after publication in May, showcases an array of special features which were selected by Elda Rotor, including a filmography, book reviews from the time of the original publication of the novel, a chronology of Jane Austen's life and times, recipes, instructions on period dancing, social etiquette, and how to prepare a tea, a literary tour of famous Austen sites, black-and-white illustrations of fashion, home décor, and architecture.
Pride and Prejudice earned swift, high praise from consumers, who were delighted with the new format, as well as its special features. Here's just a sampling of what customers had to say:
"One of the Best versions of this book in any format."—Laura from the Midwest
"Penguin's P&P is the closest ebook equivalent to the joy of reading a quality physical book - the text is perfectly formatted for the Kindle, it's been proofed, and the supplemental material is almost overwhelming. Detailed intros, useful hyperlinking and a wealth of information on Austen's times, including fashion, furniture, and food and drink, are included. It's truly an immersive experience... Penguin has set the bar for ebook quality with this release. I urge anyone with a Kindle to get a copy - *this* is the ebook experience we've been wanting."—David Hensley from Dallas, TX
"I learned a great deal more about Austen's novel in the convenient Kindle format than I did 42 years ago in college. Hopefully, I'll be able to add many enhanced Penguin classics to my Kindle Library."—Gary from Ohio
Many congratulations to Elda and Dan for all of their efforts in making the launch such a success.
Grosset & Dunlap and DK Launch New Series Based on Star Wars: The Clone Wars Movie
On July 26th, Grosset & Dunlap, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group, and DK Publishing will debut a series of books based on Star Wars: The Clone Wars movie. Clone Wars will hit theatres on August 15th and will be followed by a primetime TV series on the Cartoon Network and TNT in the fall.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars takes audiences on incredible new Star Wars adventures, combining the legendary storytelling of Lucasfilm with an eye-popping, signature animation style.
Grosset & Dunlap has approximately one million books in print and DK has over 865,000 copies in print. National media will be in full force on July 26th and all major retailers are exerting tremendous muscle behind our books.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars books will also be published by Ladybird and Puffin as well as in Penguin Australia.
Penguin China to Sponsor "The Next" - A Talent Search for China's Next Literary Sensation
Penguin China will sponsor a major new literary prize, entitled "The Next - A Search for the New Face of Chinese Literature." The prize has been established by Changjiang Art & Literature Publishing House, Top Novel (China's largest journal of young adult writing), online literary community Qidan.com, and the Sina.com web portal.
"The Next" will be a large scale Apprentice-style competition. Budding authors are invited to submit their works to the first round before September 2008, from which a shortlist of 36 works will be selected by a judging panel of major authors and critics. Chinese "netizens" will be invited to comment on and vote for the works under consideration, until a final winner is chosen from four finalists in April 2009.
The top winner will receive prizes valued at RMB1 million (US$146,000), including a publishing contract, RMB100,000 advance on publication, payment of outstanding college fees, with a guarantee of national media exposure and major marketing.
John Makinson, Chairman and CEO of Penguin Group, says: "Penguin is committed to supporting up-and-coming writers around the world, whether they are from Shanghai or San Francisco. We very much look forward to reading "the Next" sensation to come out of China's burgeoning literary scene."
Penguin Young Readers Group and Walden Media Launch Savvy Interactive Campaign
Last week, Penguin Young Readers Group and Walden Media ran an unprecedented multiplatform campaign for the eBook launch of Ingrid Law's award-winning novel Savvy (Dial). The promotion allowed readers to download the entire Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Award-winning novel for one week, free of charge, and also send the eBook for free to their friends.
The Savvy ebook was available through Penguin's Savvy site, as well as at such sites as AOL's Be Red, BookLoons.com, AllyKatzz.com, KidsReads.com, BookDivas.com and GirlsLife.com. The promotion coincides with a new push for Savvy to booksellers and librarians, including e-postcard mailings, distribution of in-store easels highlighting the book's extraordinary reviews, and mailings of temporary Savvy tattoos and Horn Book Honor Award stickers.
The promotion was mentioned on "The Today Show" last Thursday where host Kathy Lee Gifford plugged the book and eBook by saying, "I just finished reading this book. I absolutely loved it. We always talk about great summer reads for ourselves, but we don't often point out great summer reads for our kids. This is a perfect summer read for kids 10-14."
Savvy jumped as high as #14 on Amazon's childrens bestseller list, and #525 overall.
Penguin Group (USA) Has High Profile at 2008 Harlem Book Fair
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Penguin Group (USA)'s participation at the Harlem Book Fair this past Saturday was a great success. The event ranks as the largest outdoor book festival in New York City. This year, the fair, despite the intense heat, had a huge turnout, attracting thousands of visitors.
The very popular Penguin Group (USA) booth (pictured above), located on the main strip of the fair, had a huge crowd of participants lining up for giveaways, raffles and prizes all day long.
June Cross, Viking/Penguin author of Secret Daughter (pictured above with Penguin employees), participated on the "Sins of The Father: How Fathers Impact Daughters" panel along with authors Jonetta Rose Barras, Randy Williams, Grace Cornish, and D.E. Brown. The panel was very successful, with over 75 audience members in attendance. Also, Penguin's Nelson George, author of Hip Hop America, participated in the "Fiction or Nonfiction: Which is the Greater Truth?" panel along with fellow authors James Cherry, Kimberla Lawson Roby, and Kenji Jasper, aka D (taped by HBF-TV).
Special thanks to all of the Penguin Group (USA) employees who volunteered time on their day off, which helped make the Penguin Group (USA) tent so popular.
To find out about other authors who played roles at this year's fair, and to watch Nelson George's panel discussion, click on the following link: www.qbr.com, the official site of the Harlem Book Fair.
Greg Mortenson Participates in International Achievement Summit and Receives The Golden Plate Award
Greg Mortenson, author of the bestselling Three Cups of Tea (Viking/Penguin), participated in the Academy of Achievement's International Achievement Summit on July 5, 2008 in Hualalai, Hawaii, and received the Golden Plate Award. The Academy of Achievement brings students is an organization that intends to bring students face-to-face with the extraordinary leaders, thinkers and pioneers who have shaped our world.
While at the event, Greg gave a short address and Q&A with graduate students, and participated in an hour-long videotaped interview. He was presented with the Golden Plate Award at a special black-tie reception. The Golden Plate Award is presented annually by the Academy of Achievement to approximately twenty-five guests of honor at the International Achievement Summit. Chosen by the Academy's Awards Council, and other distinguished authorities, these men and women of exceptional accomplishment in the sciences, professions, business, industry, arts, literature, sports, entertainment, and public service are acclaimed ... not as winners, but as "representatives of the many who excel." Past winners include Katie Couric, Michael J. Fox, Tim Russert, Denzel Washington, Tim Wolfe, Gore Vidal, and Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah.
Young Readers Author Jon Scieszka Participates in a "Guys Read Extravaganza"
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| Jon & the Hennepin County Library team | Jon walking up to the baseball stadium in his SCIESZKA jersey | Kids talking to Jon while he signs books |
Penguin Young Readers Group author, Jon Scieszka, the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, attended the Minnesota Twins baseball game on Sunday, July 20th for a "Guys Read Extravaganza," sponsored by the Hennepin County Library. 35,000 people showed up for the event, and Penguin Young Readers Group donated Time Warp Trio (Puffin) books, which were given to the first 5000 kids that attended. Jon signed books between innings, and was interviewed by John "Gordo" Gordon (broadcasted to 70 stations in MN, IA, SD, ND, and WI), as well as for TV with Dick Bremer and Bert Blyleven (which hits 3 million viewers).
The New York Times Bestseller Highlights for the Week of August 3rd
Four new debuts on The New York Times bestseller list for the week of August 3rd: Killer View by Ridley Pearson (G. P. Putnam's Sons) hits at #15 on the hardcover fiction list; Killer Weekend also by Ridley Pearson (Jove) debuts at #16 on the mass-market list; Generation Kill by Evan Wright (Berkley) is at #16 on the paperback nonfiction list; and The Smartest 401(K) Book You'll Ever Read by Danile R. Solin (Perigee) is #8 on the hardcover advice, how-to and miscellaneous list.
Here are more bestseller highlights for the week of August 3rd:
On the hardcover fiction list, Tribute by Nora Roberts (G. P. Putnam's Sons) holds at #1 in its second week; Tailspin by Catherine Coulter (G. P. Putnam's Sons) is #8 in its fourth week, and The Beach House by Jane Green (Viking) is #14 in its fifth week.
On the hardcover nonfiction list, My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor (Viking) is #12 in its seventh week.
On the trade paperback fiction list, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (Riverhead) is #4 in its 176th week; In the Woods by Tana French (Penguin) is #8 in its eighth week; The Last Summer (Of You and Me) by Ann Brashares (Riverhead) is #11 in its eleventh week; The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs (Berkley) is #12 in its 29th week; The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd (Penguin) is #13 in its 107th week; Second Chance by Jane Green (Plume) is #14 in its eighth week; and The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards (Penguin) is #15 in its 109th week.
On the mass market paperback fiction list, Double Take by Catherine Coulter (Jove) is #2 in its fourth week; The Navigator by Clive Cussler (Berkley) is #4 in its fourth week; The Secret Servant by Daniel Silva (Signet) is #6 in its fourth week; and Into the Shadow by Christina Dodd (Signet) is #13 in its third week.
On the paperback nonfiction list, Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin (Penguin) is #1 in its 77th week; Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (Penguin) is #2 in its 78th week; The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan (Penguin) is #12 in its 47th week; and A Whole New Mind by Daniel H. Pink (Riverhead) returns to the list at #20 in its 21st week.
A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle (Plume) is at #1 on the paperback advice, how-to and miscellaneous list in its 24th week.
In the young readers sector, Ladybug Girl by Jacky Davis and David Sorman, illustrated by David Sorman (Dial) is #8 in its seventeenth week on the children's picture books list; while Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen (Viking) is #4 in its twelfth week on the children's chapter book list.
New This Week
The Ten Commandments For Business Failure by Don Keough (Portfolio, 7/24)
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