Barnes & Noble's digital media and educational products department have announced the availability of enhanced digital versions of popular Sesame Street favorites, now available as NOOK Books, including the classic "The Monster at the End of This Book" available as an eBook with audio, only on NOOK.
Barnes & Noble will launch with seven titles, with nineteen more to follow.

"We are excited to introduce a series of popular Sesame Street titles into our extensive picture book catalogue of NOOK Books," said Wendy Bronfin, Senior Director of Kids Digital Products for Barnes & Noble.

Tales For Great Grandchildren

Tales for Great Grandchildren, is a collection of 13 stories drawn from the mythology and folklore of India and Nepal, which John Jackson encountered on his travels over 30 years ago. It is aimed primarily at children aged 7 to 12.

One of the founding principles of JJ Books is to bring the magical experience of reading a traditional illustrated hardback into the 21st century.

Released on 28th February, the app will be free to download (which includes one Tale), with each subsequent Tale available for £0.69.

Blue Peter Best Book of the Decade Vote

Today's Blue Peter programme announced its search to find the best children's book of the last decade, with the launch of an online vote in which its young viewers will be able to choose from a shortlist of 10 iconic titles.

From a young James Bond to a reluctant teenage superspy, an infamous boy wizard and an underage First World War soldier, miniature action heroes abound in the list which features the bestselling children's fiction books published in the last 10 years, with only one book per author included.

The 10 books competing for the accolade (in title order) are:

· Alex Rider Mission 3: Skeleton Key by Anthony Horowitz (Walker Books, 2002)

· Candyfloss by Jacqueline Wilson, illustrated by Nick Sharratt (Random House Children's Books, 2006)

· Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney (Puffin, 2008)

· Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J K Rowling (Bloomsbury, 2003)

· Horrid Henry and the Football Fiend by Francesca Simon, illustrated by Tony Ross (Orion Children's Books, 2006)

· Mr Stink by David Walliams, illustrated by Quentin Blake (HarperCollins Children's Books, 2009)

· Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo (HarperCollins Children's Books, 2003)

· The Series of Unfortunate Events: Austere Academy by Lemony Snicket (Egmont Books, 2002)

· Theodore Boone by John Grisham (Hodder & Stoughton, 2010)

· Young Bond: SilverFin ─ A James Bond Adventure by Charlie Higson (Puffin, 2005)

Five of the books included have inspired feature films (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Harry Potter, Horrid Henry, The Series of Unfortunate Events and due this year Private Peaceful); seven are part of a series (Alex Rider, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Harry Potter, Horrid Henry, The Series of Unfortunate Events, Theodore Boone and Young Bond); and two deal with social issues such as homelessness, debt and divorce with sensitivity and humour (Candyfloss and Mr Stink).

The list also boasts several high-profile authors with three former Children's Laureates (Jacqueline Wilson, Michael Morpurgo and Quentin Blake who illustrates Mr Stink), bestselling adult US crime author John Grisham, comedian David Walliams, and Britain's richest author J K Rowling all up for the Award.

The shortlist for the vote is made up of the 10 bestselling (by volume) fiction books of the last 10 years for 5─11 year olds with a first publication date between January 2002 and December 2011. Only the top-selling book per individual, named author is included. (Source: Nielsen BookScan TCM Top 5000 Children's Fiction (Y2) from 200101 to 201152 filtered by CMBC Interest Level 5─11 years.)

The shortlist will be featured on Blue Peter's website bbc.co.uk/bluepeter for three weeks, during which time children under the age of 16 can log on with their BBC iD and vote for their favourite. The vote will close at 4pm on Thursday 23 February.

The winning book will be announced on Blue Peter on 1 March (5.45pm, CBBC), alongside the winner of the annual Blue Peter Book of the Year Award on a special show dedicated to books to tie-in with World Book Day. Blue Peter will invite the winning author to collect a 'Best Children's Book of the Last 10 Years' trophy on the show.

Five Children And It Makeover

Imogen Russell Williams, writing in The Guardian, is

...deeply torn by the news that Jacqueline Wilson has written an updated "echo" of Edith Nesbit's Five Children and It, to be published by Puffin Books in August. I admire Wilson's writing, and can imagine a writer who adores Nesbit as Wilson does - she wrote the Introduction to Puffin's 2010 reissue of The Railway Children, and has called Nesbit her "all-time favourite classic children's author" - relishing such a privileged engagement with a dearly-loved and venerated influence, not to mention the chance to bring shedloads of her own devoted readers along to the party.

On the other hand, there's the fact that Five Children and It is not a neglected old tome in need of a dusting-off - it's never been out of print since it was published in 1902. For most people who now remember reading it as children, it's not only unimprovable, but a sacred text.

Footballer Supports Reading Campaign

I'm... very proud that at just 22 I've become a published author, having written my own series of children's books about a young footballer called TJ (my nickname at school).

UK Ebook Sales Fivefold Increase

from one of many reports on Amazon's latest sales figures:

In the UK, Amazon said sales of Kindle e-books in the last three months had increased five-fold in comparison to the same period in 2010 and it received twice as many orders for Kindle e-readers in the run-up to Christmas than last year. While the Kindle was the best-selling product for the last quarter in 2011 for the UK, no e-books were in the top 10 bestselling products list--a departure from previous years where anywhere up to four have featured. The top 10 bestselling items list for the last quarter was dominated instead by DVDs, video games and music.

Bizzy Bear On The Farm

Enthusiastic GiggleApps review of a Nosy Crow interactive book.

Following launch publication of The Field, a novella by New Zealand author, Bill Nagelskerke, two more ACHUKAbooks titles are scheduled to appear in early February, with further books and proposals under serious consideration.

Our FAQ was recently updated. Be sure you have checked it out, particularly if you are an author considering digital publication.

All the recent publicity and discussion about ebooks (referenced in several blog links) has only served to strengthen my belief that a publisher dynamic will be an essential feature of digital publishing long-term.

The benefit of being an ACHUKAbooks-published author will increase with every new title released. And once we move beyond this pioneer period, digital readers will be looking for the same kind of quality assurance that they have come to expect from print publishers.

Our aim is still to have some half a dozen standard-bearing titles on our list by Easter.

Can I remind people that I am not just seeking submissions of children's and young adult books. I am genuinely interested in publishing for adults as well, both fiction and non-fiction, as the FAQ make clear.

For a review copy of The Field, or to send a submission, email kindleATachuka.co.uk

Knowing me, knowing you: Jacqueline Wilson and Nick Sharratt - Features - Health & Families - The Independent

Jacqueline Wilson and Nick Sharratt talk about their working friendship in a feature from The Independent...

The Brian Selznick Interview

from the City Room blog...

Recommended.

Children's Non-Fiction Title On Ipad

the app is a result of a partnership between the book's author Mary Kay Carson, the new children's publishing company Bookerella and the ad agency Story Worldwide

Jonathan Franzen Is Wrong

A riposte to Jonathan Franzen, by Lance Ulanoff

I have no idea why Franzen assumes that publishers and authors are changing their books for the e-editions. With the exception of no longer knowing exact page numbers, I don't see anyone changing their books for the Amazon Kindle, Kindle Fire, Barnes & Noble Nook, or the Apple iPad and iBooks. An ebook reader is just a new delivery mechanism for literature.

To make matters worse, Franzen throws "capitalists" into the mix. They hate print books, he said, because these physical books will continue to work 10 years from now. "It's a bad business model," noted Franzen. I think capitalists like any kind of book they can sell you in mass quantities. I don't think they love ebooks more because they won't last as long (or at least the platforms they're on won't). My guess is that capitalists appreciate the speed with which you can get an ebook to market and the enhanced opportunities for broad distribution.

...

I will not lie and say that I won't miss print when it's gone, but, as Franzen himself predicts, it will be a memory in 50 years. Franzen's glad he won't be here to see it. I, on the other hand, hope to live well past my 97th year and to thoroughly enjoy ebooks from now to then and beyond. Maybe Franzen will change his mind and join me.

I was thinking to myself the other day, Now who is our current Dick King-Smith? And I wasn't able to answer my question.
Then this evening I opened one of today's packages and found this title, just out in paperback.

There was my answer. It should have come to me without prompting.
Even in paperback this is a lovely speicimen of a physical book, with delightful red, grey and brown woodcut style illustrations by Iain McIntosh, whose website is well worth a visit.

Goodreads quits sourcing data from "restrictive" Amazon...

Potentially significant announcement for KIndle authors...

A Happy Ending for the Short Story

Publishers are excited at the perfect format for the new generation of e-readers, writes Claire Coughlan, in the Irish Independent...

The piece contains links to several websites that publish short stories...