Publishers Weekly

PBS Kids in collaboration with GBH Kids is releasing a slate of short-form episodes and an hour-long special adapted from Kwame Alexander’s picture book 'Acoustic Rooster and His Barnyard Band.'

Children’s author Jean Van Leeuwen, known for a broad oeuvre including her beginning-reader stories following the adventures of Oliver Pig, died on March 3 of cancer. She was 87.

A lawsuit filed in federal court on April 7 by the American Library Association and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees alleges that the Trump administration’s recent “evisceration” of the Institute of Museum and Library Services is both illegal and unconstitutional.

Haruki Murakami and Hoda Barakat are among the winners of the 19th Sheikh Zayed Book Awards, which are awarded in eight categories and honor excellence in Arab-language publishing.

After agreeing to accept a bid from Alliance Entertainment as part of a Chapter 11 reorganization, Diamond owners terminated the deal in favor of a joint offer from Universal Distribution and Ad Populum. The action triggered a lawsuit from Alliance, and the matter is now in the hands of two courts.

This year’s six-book International Booker Prize shortlist comprises five novels and one short story collection translated from five languages. The winner will be revealed at a ceremony in London on May 20.

A prolific magazine writer and the author of seven books of nonfiction and two novels, Kornbluth cofounded Bookreporter.com, one of the first online destinations for books coverage, in 1996. He died on April 3.

The union, which represents workers at HarperCollins and the New Press, has petitioned the National Labor Relations Board to allow Abrams Books employees to vote on unionization. Organizers behind the union drive cited low salaries and a lack of job security as factors.

During her tenure at Random House Publishing Group, Norey created the enduring interior house styles, as well as illustrations and maps, for such authors as Lee Child, Diana Gabaldon, George R.R. Martin, and Danielle Steel. She died on March 28.

In its annual State of America's Libraries report, the American Library Association found that George M. Johnson’s All Boys Aren’t Blue was the most challenged book of last year, among other titles largely by and about LGBTQ+ persons and people of color.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island has denied a motion to preliminarily enjoin the National Endowment for the Arts from prohibiting grant recipients from using grant funding to promote “gender ideology.”

In the cascade of news about massive tariffs imposed on many of America's largest trading partners, books appear to have fared well—although experts say the situation remains very fluid.

Attorneys general from 21 states have sued the Trump administration to block its recent efforts to scuttle the Institute of Museum and Library Services and several other federal agencies.

The launch of Molly Stern’s Zando has all gone according to plan—or at least to her financial plan. Still, four years in, the unorthodox indie press has succeeded in some surprising ways.

Avid Reader secures a subversive and high-octane debut, Viking picks up a history of an authoritarian-leaning corporate titan, two global superstars sign with Penguin Random House, and more in this week’s book deals.

An inside look at the publication process for the author’s latest thriller.

Lightlark series author Alex Aster makes her adult debut with the rom-com Summer in the City, #1 on our hardcover fiction list. Plus longtime Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter recalls halcyon days for magazines in When the Going Was Good, and Gregory Maguire’s Wicked prequel Elphie proves popular.

Amidst turmoil, the American Library Association is marking National Library Week April 6-12 with the tagline “Drawn to the Library,” which emphasizes the essential role libraries play in American life. This year’s honorary cochairs are Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud.

Cave Canem, a nonprofit dedicated to fostering the careers of Black poets, has released Magnitude & Bond: A Field Study on Black Literary Arts Organizations, documenting how Black writing communities sustain their creative and scholarly work.

On April 2, a number of letters from the National Endowment for the Humanities were sent to arts and culture organizations across the country ending their previously awarded grants. Just days before, a report from the NEA found that the arts and cultural sector contributed $1.2 trillion to U.S. GDP in 2023.