In November, total net book sales rose 1.8%, to $1.07 billion, representing sales of 1,205 publishers and distributed clients as reported to the Association of American Publishers. For the first 11 months of 2015, total net book sales were down 2.6%, to $13.9 billion.

In November, trade book sales rose 9.1%, led by adult paperbacks, up 31.4%, and adult hardcovers, up 12%. Except for university press e-books, whose sales rose 36.2%, most e-books were among the worst-performing categories. Downloaded audio continued to climb, up 27.1%, while physical audio continued to drop, down 12%.

In January, Susie Alexander planned to close her children's bookstore, Once Upon a Storybook, Tustin, Calif., which she had opened in October 2014--unless, she told the Orange County Register, "an investor in shining armor intervenes." Today, the newspaper reported that an investor in shining armor has intervened, and the store will remain open.

Local attorney Erin Moriarty, who is investing in the store, said, "It's such an enchanting place. When you see the reactions of children and the joy on their faces when they walk in, you realize it's something worth saving." Already, Alexander said, Moriarty is bringing in "new marketing ideas."

Moriarty is a friend of Once Upon a Storybook assistant manager Tina Pomroy, who said that Moriarty had wanted to invest in a retail business but hadn't found a good fit. When she visited the bookstore, "It really touched Erin's heart," Pomroy said. "Susie has created a wonderful feeling of community here."

Alexander plans to hold a "Chapter Two" celebration on April 23. The all-day event will feature authors and illustrators, costumed characters, musicians and literary-themed refreshments such as cookies inspired by If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff, illustrated by Felicia Bond.

Because of a redevelopment project, BookSmart, which has been in downtown Morgan Hill, Calif., for 21 years, is moving to a new spot about a mile from downtown in what co-owner Brad Jones called "a beautiful building with a great landlord and many fine businesses all around." BookSmart hopes to be in its new home in Harvest Plaza at 1295 E. Dunne Ave. by June.

Jones and co-owner Cinda Meister have launched an Indiegogo campaign to raise $75,000 to do remodeling and are relying on personal loans for the rest. Overall, the cost of remodeling, moving, adding new equipment and restocking will be about $300,000. "The banks just aren't an option for us this time," Jones added. "The banks use profit-based criteria to make loan decisions but there just isn't enough margin in the book business in a small town to look good to the banks."

Inspired by Kepler's Books' hybrid business model, Kepler's 2020, BookSmart is also forming a not-for-profit organization called BookSmart Community Advantage, which will focus on community-building and literary education programs separate from the retail side of the business. A group of BookSmart fans created the BookSmart Tiger Team, which advocated the plan.

After 34 years in business, Armchair Books, Pendleton, Ore, is closing next month because of declining sales and "a particularly slow sales period" since the beginning of the year, according to the East Oregonian.

Terry Dallas, who has owned the store with her family for 27 years, attributed the sales decline to Amazon and e-books and said the rise in minimum wage in the state over the next six years to $12.50 would make it difficult to pay the store's five part-time workers.

Dallas said that a typical dilemma recently would be "Should I buy a new garbage can or put new duct tape on the old can?"

Dallas added that she would miss the company of the store's loyal customers.

Adult coloring books apparently are indelible. A year after Shelf Awareness's last roundup, sales in the coloring category are still soaring, alongside the number of titles on offer, from one million units sold in 2014 to 12 million last year, and 300 titles in 2014 to 2,000 in 2015, according to Nielsen BookScan.

Booksellers confirm the boom. At Bank Square Books, Mystic, Conn., "adult coloring books were crazy in 2015," said owner Annie Philbrick. "They're coded under Art, and that section's sales increased from $6,969 in 2014 to $23,213 in 2015. Total units sold increased from 300 in 2014 to 1,300 in 2015."

Adults coloring at the Southeast Steuben County Library. (photo by Jenn Gaylor)

Alice Hutchinson, owner of Byrd's Books, Bethel, Conn., saw a similar trend: "In 2014, we sold about $460 of coloring books. In 2015, we sold upward of $4,200 in coloring books."

Publishers of all stripes, even university presses, are making their marks on the genre, leading, perhaps, to the first cramps of coloring fatigue.

"The coloring books are still doing well for us, though with the amount available I have to be careful not to over-order," said Jill Hendrix, owner of Fiction Addiction, Greenville, S.C.

"Our coloring book section is overflowing; I can't fit another book," said Diane Holcomb, book buyer at East West Bookshop, Mountain View, Calif. "I've stopped ordering frontlist coloring books unless there's something unique about them, due to space constraints."

Publishers are working hard to make something unique. From nature to nursery to naughtiness, upcoming 2016 titles leave no niche unfilled. But the saturated market hasn't dampened sales figures or dampened another key element of the adult coloring book phenomenon: coloring, wining, dining and mingling events.

Hutchinson, of Byrd's Books, said her store holds "monthly coloring nights at the arts center across the street. We supply the materials and food, and folks bring their beverage. We have date nights, ladies meeting for fun and singles--so we really have fun, relaxing, colorful evenings!"

"We offered two coloring book events in our store, one for adults and one for children," said  Holcomb of East West. "The only event that had participants was the one for adults!"

Fiction Addiction is hosting its fifth Coloring, Cocktails and Conversation event at the end of April, said Hendrix. "We're averaging about 20 people per event. Now, if there were just a better supply of pencils available."

Sets of colored pencils are a particularly popular pairing with adult coloring books. "Colored pencil sets from Peter Pauper were also a huge item and were hard to get," said Philbrick of Bank Square Books. "Our rep told us in January that we were one of the few stores that even had any."

Janis Herbert of Face in a Book, El Dorado Hills, Calif., said her store's "Color Like a Grown-Up" display "gets lots of attention, and we're constantly refilling it," and that "pencil sets, too, sell very well."

Sue Davis of River Lights Bookstore, Dubuque, Iowa, sells International Arrivals brand markers and pencils with her store's coloring books. She also found a solution for small stores with too little shelf space for wide coloring books: an oversized magazine spinner from University Products.

Carol Spurling of BookPeople of Moscow, Moscow, Idaho, had different stock problems and event successes: "Coloring books are still selling well in our store--I let my stock levels drop in late December and early January, thinking the peak had passed, but I quickly realized that was the wrong strategy--and this week I took them to a book fair for the first time. They have been a hot item among middle-grade boys and girls, and their mothers, too."

Some publishers are bridging the gap between the traditional coloring book audience--children--and the new one: adults. Let's Color Together: A Shareable Coloring Book for Parents and Kids by Margaret Peot is coming from Sourcebooks April 1, and Color with Me, Mom! by Jasmine Narayan (a child psychologist) and Hannah Davies from Race Point/Quarto April 15. Little, Brown's four-book Coloring Studio series (Extraordinary Machines, Once Upon a Fairy Tale, Amazing Animals and Imaginary Cities), all released in January, are designed for children over 6 and adults to enjoy together.

Other publishers are looking for the next children's-turned-adult crafting activity. Little, Brown released two connect-the-dots titles in March (Dot-to-Dot: Journeys and Dot-to-Dot: Nature). Barron's released one in February (Ultimate Dot-to-Dot) and one in March (Extreme Dot-to-Dot). Ulysses Press will publish Calming Dot-to-Dot in September. In February, Dover continued its popular Creative Haven series (12 million copies sold) with Wild Animals Dot-to-Dot, which doubles as a coloring book once the dots are connected.

Some titles are literally stretching the envelope. WAVE by Shantell Martin, out May 17 from TarcherPerigee, unfolds into a single nine-foot, accordion-style sheet. To the Moon: The Tallest Coloring Book in the World (February 23) and To the Ocean Deep: The Longest Coloring Book in the World (May 24), both by Sarah Yoon, are 15 feet tall/long. Both are published by Laurence King, the original publishers of the "queen of coloring," Johanna Basford.

Basford's Secret Garden (2013) and Enchanted Forest (2015) were the first adult coloring book blockbusters. Her next titles are from Penguin Random House: Lost Ocean came out last October, Magical Jungle is out August 9 and Johanna's Christmas comes out October 25. Last July, Laurence King adapted Enchanted Forest into a book of 20 detachable postcards, a design move mirrored by many other publishers (including Penguin--Lost Ocean: 36 Postcards is out May 31).

As the formats evolve and supply increases, the major remaining question is demand. "Stores are overwhelmed with coloring book choices," said John Mesjak, a sales rep with Abraham & Associates. "The supply/demand curve we saw in operation last year has flipped. What I've been seeing this season is that buyers are considering their options, avoiding the most-obvious rip-offs, and buying the really unique and/or most beautiful ones. But nearly every publisher catalogue has coloring books this season." --Tobias Mutter

Here follows a sampling of upcoming or recently released titles set to ride the adult coloring book wave. All pub dates are in 2016 unless otherwise specified.

The Experiment: Two entries in the Mindfulness Coloring Books series: Volume 3 (September 20) and The Mindfulness Coloring Engagement Calendar 2017 (June 26), plus a sequel to Patterns of the Universe: A Coloring Adventure in Math and Beauty by Alex Bellos and Edmund Harriss, Visions of the Universe: A Coloring Journey Through Math's Great Mysteries (November 29). 427,000 copies of the Mindfulness series are in print.

Candlewick Press: Fill-Me-In by Moose Allain (April 12) combines coloring, drawing and writing. Where's Waldo? The Coloring Book by Martin Handford (June 14) re-purposes classic Waldo scenes for coloring. The first two entries in the new series the Coloring Book of Cards and Envelopes by Nosy Crow and Rebecca Jones, Nature and Flowers and Butterflies, came out March 10. The third, Christmas, comes out September 27. Each Cards and Envelopes book has stickers to seal customized cards and envelopes.

Dover Publications: In addition to its Creative Haven series (see above), Dover is releasing ESCAPES Collage Art Coloring Book by Marty Noble on April 20, with 55 illustrations inspired by "Art Nouveau posters, Japanese prints and vintage seed packets." On August 2, 2015, Dover launched National Coloring Book Day. This year's celebration, which coincides with the publisher's 75th anniversary, has events planned in 49 states (see a listing here).

New Page Books: Color Your Chakras: An Interactive Way to Understand the Energy Centers of the Body by Susan Shumsky (June 22).

Prospect Park Books: Color Pasadena by Ali Zigerell (October 11), inspired by a plane's-eye view of publisher Colleen Dunn Bates's hometown. It will be out in time for the Rose Parade.

little bee books: Street Art (August 30), Tattoo Art (August 30), Pop Art (May 31). From the Pictology series: Space Explorer by Pedro Correa (July 5) and Wild Wonders by Jake McDonald (July 5). And coming September 20: two Foil Art books by Laura Barrett, Christmas and Beauty and the Beast, which include rub-on metallic foil in addition to space for coloring.

Abrams Noterie: The publisher will continue its Vive Le Color! series throughout 2016,. The most recent titles are Flowers, Mandala, Africa and Arabia (all January 27). Upcoming are Peace and Meditation (both June 14), which include pencils, as well as Color Origami: Botanica and Color Origami: Fauna (both June 28) and Classic Coloring: Alice in Wonderland (March 1).

Chronicle Books: Fantastic Cities: A Coloring Book of Amazing Places Real and Imagined by Steve McDonald, released last August, has sold more than 300,000 copies. A sequel, Fantastic Structures, came out March 15. A new series by Molly Hatch called Journey in Color began March 1 with two titles, French Baroque and Moroccan Motifs. Scandinavian Designs comes out September 27. Chronicle has two pop-culture tie-ins, Darth Vader and Family Coloring Book and Game of Thrones Coloring Book, as well as 642 Things to Color (August 30) and This Annoying Life: A Mindless Coloring Book for the Highly Stressed by Oslo Davis (October 4). Chronicle is the U.S. distributor for Laurence King, which gave the publisher a first-hand look at Basford's meteoric rise.

Page Street Publishing: Trinidadian artist Jade Gedeon takes colorers on a trip to her favorite places in Island Escape: My Caribbean Coloring Book (June 7) and Rainforest Escape: My Island Animal, Exotic Flower and Tropical Plant Color Book (July 5). Both books will have lay-flat binding and thick watercolor paper.

Post Hill Press: Coloring Zen for the Stressed Out Modernist by Jennifer Zimmermann (April 12) uses modern art and mid-century modern designs for relaxation. Men in Uniform Adult Coloring Book by M.G. Anthony (May 3) features buff firemen and soldiers for, um, relaxation. The Yoga Poses Adult Coloring Book by M.G. Anthony (June 14) shows 50 yoga poses. M.G. Anthony's Trump Coloring Book has been out since last December and is nearing 50,000 copies in print. Color n' Postcards: Karma by A.J. Alma (July 12), subtitled "Color Your World with Good Intentions," has 20 removable cards. From Post Hill imprint Her Universe Press: Fangirls: A Coloring Book for Girls Who Like Stuff by Katie Cook and Ashley Eckstein (June 7), for female fans of sci-fi and fantasy.

C&T Publishing: Blooming Sanctuary Coloring Book and Opulent Bazaar Coloring Book (February 7), both from the 3 Books in 1 series, feature three different illustration styles in each book. On April 7 C&T will publish The Art of Laurel Burch Coloring Book, using sketches from Burch's sketchpad thanks to a partnership with Laurel's daughter Aarin. It will also publish Tiny Friends Coloring Book (August 7) and a postcard version of the Laurel Burch book.

TarcherPerigee: In addition to WAVE (see above), it will publish The Stoner's Coloring Book: A Coloring Book for High-Minded Adults in July. Before becoming part of TarcherPerigee, Perigee released Outside the Lines: An Artists' Coloring Book for Giant Imaginations in 2013, with work by 100 contemporary and street artists. A sequel, Outside the Lines, Too, came out last September. Also from TarcherPerigee last year: Color Me Crazy: Insanely Detailed Creations to Challenge Your Skills and Blow Your Mind by Peter Deligdisch (July 7, 2015) and Color Me Cluttered: A Coloring Book to Transform Everyday Chaos into Art by Durell Godfrey (December 8, 2015).

Indiana University Press: The first in its new Color Your Campus series comes out this summer, featuring the campus of Indiana University. Talks are underway with four other universities to render their campuses colorable. Indiana University Press is the first university press to enter the adult coloring book market.

DK: Animals of the World Coloring Book (September 6), based on images from the bestselling Wildlife of the World (October 6, 2015), is DK's first foray into coloring books.

Freight Books: Colouring Scotland by Laura Henderson (October 1), with Scottish landmarks and landscapes.

Lonely Planet: Ultimate Travel Coloring Book: The 100 Best Places on the Planet... to Color (March 16), based on the top results from last year's Ultimate Travel: Our List of the 500 Best Places to See.

Harlequin: Nature's Glory by Christina Rose (February), featuring wilderness tableaux; What Lifts You by street art/social media artist Kelsey Montague (March); and Exotic Kingdom by Marty Woods (July).

Little, Brown: Two titles from wedding expert Maggie Lord--Color Me Married: The Stress-Free Way to the Big Day (April 5) and Welcome to Baby Land: Coloring for the Calm Mom (September 13). It will also publish American Road Trip: Color Your Way from Coast to Coast by Brian Sharkey Vaught and Michelle Sharkey Vaught (September 27), based on the couple's real road trip, and the Dot-to-Dot connect-the-dots series (see above).

Treehouse Publishing Group, an imprint of Amphorae Publishing Group: Painting for Peace: A Coloring Book (May 24) by Carol Swartout Klein, who grew up in Ferguson, Mo., a book designed for adults and children to color together and a companion piece to the children's picture book Painting for Peace in Ferguson.

Sterling Publishing: Millie Marotta continues her bestselling series of nature-themed coloring books (5 million copies sold worldwide) with Wild Savannah: A Coloring Book Adventure (April 5), after Tropical World (2015) and Animal Kingdom (2014). A fourth is coming from Sterling imprint Lark in October. Lulu Mayo has two titles coming from Sterling: A Million Dogs (May 24) and A Million Cats (April 5). Two new entries in the Art of Mindfulness series come in August: Refreshed and Inspired Coloring and Joyful and Radiant Coloring. For those seeking the exact opposite of mindfulness, The Passive-Aggressive Coloring Book: (For People Who Just Don't Get the Whole Calm Thing) by Charlotte Farmer is out April 5. Sterling is also branching into the other-than-coloring crafts for adults with Colortronic: A Kaleidoscopic Coloring Challenge (August 2), a paint-by-numbers book, and Scratch Night-View Cityscapes and Scratch Night-View Landscape (both October), two scratch-art books.

Timber Press: Color the Pacific Northwest by Zoe Keller (June 1) and Sensational Succulents: An Adult Coloring Book of Amazing Shapes and Magical Patterns by Debra Lee Baldwin and Laura Serra (June 1).

Plume: The sequel to Animorphia: An Extreme Coloring and Search Challenge by Kerby Rosanes, Imagimorphia, is out June 21. Animorphia has 500,000 copies in print in the U.S., and its author has a large social media following (1.4 million Facebook and 179,000 Instagram followers).

Insight Editions: DC Comics Coloring Book (July 26), DC Comics: Wonder Woman Coloring Book (October 18), Supernatural: The Official Coloring Book (September 20), Assassin's Creed: The Official Coloring Book (October 25), and Dinosaurs: A Coloring Book by William Stout (October 4).

Red Wheel/Weiser: From its Conari Press imprint: The Soul Discovery Coloring Book: Noodle, Doodle, and Scribble Your Way to an Extraordinary Life by Janet Conner and Christine Pensa (March 1), which is as much guided journal as coloring book, and The Witches' Almanac Coloring Book (April 1).

Cedar Fort Publishing & Media: Reverie: A Coloring Retreat by Mysha Denson (March 8), a Mormon coloring book.

Graffeg: Three titles from this independent Welsh publishing company by Welsh author Helen Elliott, all out June 30: Beach Life, Village Life and Dog's Life.

The History Press: Distributed in the U.S. by Trafalgar Square, it will release a series of 20 45-page coloring books based on British locations between March and May and an Irish one in July. It's also publishing The Hot Air Balloons Colouring Book in July.

Microcosm Publishing: The Beard Coloring Book by Meggyn Pomerleau (November 15) and The Post-Structuralist Vulva Coloring Book by Elly Blue and Meggyn Pomerleau (November 15). The latter's cover is a pink image of George Washington as shown on the one dollar bill with his face covered by a vagina.

Gallery Books: Fantastic Cityscapes: A Mister Mourao Coloring Book (July 5), and get the red pencils ready for Zombies!: A Creepy Coloring Book for the Coming Global Apocalypse by Juscelino Neco (June 21).

St. Martin's Griffin: Two irreverent titles by Hannah Caner: Chill the F*ck Out: A Swear Word Coloring Book (April 12) and Mommy Drinks Because You Cry: A Sarcastic Coloring Book (April 26). Three additions to the Zendoodle series: Zendoodle Journaling (September 27), Zendoodle: Uplifting Inspirations (May 17) and Zendoodle Coloring: Cozy Cats (March 22). Animals: A Mindful Coloring Book by Georgie Woolridge (September 6), Waterlife: A Mindful Coloring Book (March 8), also by Woolridge, Romantic Country: A Fantasy Coloring Book by Eriy (March 1), Dream by Kim Sun Hyun (September 6), and Pandora (September 6), also by by Kim Sun Hyun.

Sixth & Spring Books: Color Odyssey: A Creative Coloring Journey by tattoo artist Chris Garver (February 17), Botanical Wonderland: A Blissful Coloring Retreat by Rachel Reinert (April 5), Make Something Beautiful: Coloring in the Maximalist Style by Bari J. (October 4), Harmony of Nature: Unwind. Create. Color. by Mihoko Kurihara (October 20, 2015, originally published in Japan), Monogram Coloring: Color and Create an Exotic Alphabet by Marica Zottino (September 6), and two Devotional Coloring books: Visual Scriptures (October 6) and O Holy Night (September 22).

Ulysses Press: Calming Dot-to-Dot (see above) and Coloring Bird Mandalas: 30 Hand-drawn Designs for Mindful Relaxation by Wendy Piersall (August 9).

Schiffer Publishing: A three-book Painterly Days series, all released on March 28 and printed on watercolor paper: Flowers, Woodland and Pattern.

Atria: The Coloring Book for Goths: The World's Most Depressing Book by Tom Devonald (May 3), billed as an "off-color coloring book."

Penguin Books Australia: Colour Your Australia by Grace West (September 28) covers the continent from "Uluru to the Daintree."

Plexus Publishing: David Bowie: Starman: A Coloring Book (April 19), distributed by PGW, follows the late musician's 50-year fashion evolution over 30 illustrations.

Andrews McMeel: The Posh Adult Coloring Books series continues with God Is Good (March 15), Hymnspirations for Joy & Praise (March 1), Happy Doodles for Fun & Relaxation (January 5), and Thomas Kinkade Designs for Inspiration and Relaxation (May 3). They will also publish Johanna Basford calenders starting with Johanna Basford 2017 Coloring Day-to-Day (July 12). McMeel has over 1.5 million coloring books in print already.

Countryman Press:  A new series for casual coloring called Color Your Way, 10 Minutes a Day, with the first two titles out September 13 (Joy and Gratitude). Mandalas and More: A Meditative Drawing and Coloring Book for Mind, Body and Spirit by Cher Kaufmann (April 11) will teach how to make the mandalas themselves before coloring them in.

Farcountry Press: Yellowstone National Park Adult Coloring Book: A Magical Coloring Journey Through Yellowstone National Park by Dave Ember (March 15). Farcountry plans to expand into Glacier and Yosemite later this year.

Sourcebooks: Let's Color Together: A Shareable Coloring Book for Parents and Kids by Margaret Peot (see above) and Color Your Dreams: 100 Inspiring Words, Captivating Coloring Pages, and Uplifting Activities by Juliet Madison (April 5).

Kregel Publications: Two upcoming coloring books from this Christian publisher: Colour Your World: A Spiritual Colouring Book (March 26) and Postcards of Blessing: Colour, Pray, Send! (April 27), both by Dutch artist Marcel Flier.

Knopf: Vogue Colors A to Z: A Fashion Coloring Book (April 5), edited by Valerie Steiker, who is also the magazine's culture editor. The book features 26 archival covers from 1912 to 1932.

Cornell Lab Publishing Group: America's Favorite Birds: 40 Beautiful Birds to Color by Miyoko Chu and Brenda Lyons (September 13) and Birds of Paradise: A Coloring Expedition by Edwin Scholes and Andrew Leach (September 13), both printed on responsibly forested stock with 25% net proceeds to be donated to children's educational and community programs. Pages from the books will be sampled at national parks this year as part of the National Park Service Centennial.

Pomegranate: Intricate Ink: Animals in Detail Coloring Book by Tim Jeffs, Fractal Art by Doug Harrington, Art Forms in Nature by Ernst Haeckel and Mandalas by Paul Heussenstamm, all out since January 21.

PM Press: An LGBT take on coloring books with The Big Gay Alphabet Coloring Book (June 1, 2015), Sometimes the Spoon Runs Away with Another Spoon Coloring Book (from 2010), both part of the Reach and Teach series, and Girls Will Be Boys Will Be Girls, to be reprinted in Spring 2017 (it was originally published in 2004).

Distributed in the U.S. by the University of Chicago Press: Flowers of Love: A Kew Colouring Book by Sue Mason (April 15), a mathematician-turned-artist's view of the Royal Botanic Gardens in London, and Albion's Glorious Ile by William Hole (Unicorn Press, April 15).

Barron's Educational Series: Continues its Color Yourself Calm series with Creativity, Happiness and Relaxation (all February); its Just Add Color series with Butterflies, Fashion, Design, Flowers & Nature and Mehndi (also February), its Copycat Coloring Books series, its Cool & Calm Coloring series, and two Dot-To-Dot books (see above). They have also recently published The Menagerie: Animal Portraits to Color, Beautiful Vintage: Creative Coloring for Grown-ups and Motif Magic: Amazing Designs from Around the World to Color (all February). They will publish Animals Night & Day Coloring Book: Amazing Animals to Bring to Life in March, Gulliver’s New Travels: Coloring in a New World and Color Quest: Extreme Coloring Challenges to Complete in April, Time to Dream: Color, Relax, and Develop Your Creativity in May, and The Aviary: Bird Portraits to Color in June.

Familius: The Color Me series has a million copies in print thanks to exclusive sales at Costco, and it recently acquired the rights to sell to trade and gift accounts. Color Me 3 comes out July 11.

I Love Mel, distributed in the U.S. by SCB Distributors: Coloring book sales jumped 60% last year, led by two titles in its Color Me Good series: Colour Me Swiftly (March 2015) and Colour Me Good Benedict Cumberbatch (June 2014).

HarperElixir: Continues the Coloring Books for the Soul series by Lydia Hess with Sacred Angels, Sacred Animals and Sacred Heavens (all August 16). They will also publish Enchanted Tarot and Enchanted Worlds, both by Monte Farber and Amy Zerner (September 20).

Pavilion Books Group: Won the Bookseller International Achievement Award at the British Independent Publishers Guild Awards 2016 for its work publishing Millie Marotta's coloring books (see above) in the U.K. Its Batsford imprint will publish London Buildings Colouring Book by Robin Farquhar and Hannah Dipper in the U.S. in September.

Beyond Words Publishing: A Course in Miracles Coloring Book: Colorful Wisdom for Spiritual Transformation by Andrea Smith comes out late June, based on A Course in Miracles: Foundation for Inner Peace.

Running Press: Will publish Coloring Kits throughout the year, including Harry Potter (April 5), The Calming Coloring Kit (June 28), Sugar Skulls (August 23), Harry Potter: Magical Creatures (September 27), and two Peanuts kits in September. Each kit contains 10 colored pencils and 50 illustrated cards.

Fox Chapel Publishing: Has 100 coloring book titles in print over 15 series, with 7 million copies sold since 2014, many in nontraditional retailers. "We have not yet found a market where there isn't a demand for these products," said director of sales Ray Wolf. "At least one national retailer that we know of is working on a five-year category plan." Fox Chapel claims to be the first publisher to add detachable perforated pages, and has won DO Magazine's Fair Trade Seal of Approval for business practices with authors and artists.

John Blake Publishing: Colouring and Drawing Posters and The Foodie's Colouring Book come to the U.S. in fall 2016.

Quarto: In addition to Color Me with Mom (see above), it will publish Color Me to Sleep (April 28) and will continue the Color by Number series. Also from Quarto imprint Race Point: Color Me Fearless (February 15) and Portable Color Me Happy (January 5).

Hachette: From the Faithwords imprint: Joyful Inspirations Coloring Book: With Illustrated Scripture and Quotes to Cheer Your Soul (April 5) and A Very Blessed Christmas Coloring Book (October 2), both by Robin Mead, and from last November, Heroines of the Old Testament Coloring Book by Betsy Karounos, part of the ongoing Color the Bible series.

Laurence King: To the Moon and To the Ocean Deep: the tallest/longest coloring books (see above), Birdtopia: Coloring Book by Daisy Fletcher (May 17), Floribunda: A Flower Coloring Book by Leila Duly (April 5), with a cover printed in pink foil to look like a "turn of the century perfume bottle," The Bicycle Coloring Book: Journey to the Edge of the World by Shan Jiang (April 5), which has a storyline and doubles as a flip book, Matthew Williamson: Fashion, Print and Coloring by fashion designer Matthew Williamson (September 6), Toolshed Coloring Book by Lee Phillips (October 25), which features tools the author discovered in his dying grandfather's shed, Jon Burgerman's Burgerworld: A Coloring Book (October 18), Creative Cat: Pattern, Doodle and Color with a Muse by David Sinden (August 2), #OOTD: Fashion Flat Lays to Color In by Laura Hickman (October 4), for young fashionistas--referencing the act of laying out outfits for the day, and Pierre the Maze Detective and The Great Coloring Adventure (August 9), based on the Pierre the Maze Detective maze book (also from Laurence King).

Watson-Guptill: Cats in Paris: A Magical Coloring Book by Won-Sun Jang (January 26), Wonderland: A Coloring Book Inspired by Alice’s Adventures by Amily Shen (April 5), Pop Manga Coloring Book: A Surreal Journey Through a Cute, Curious, Bizarre, and Beautiful World by Camilla d'Errico (July 19), Marked in Ink: A Tattoo Coloring Book by Megan Massacre (August 2), The Night Voyage: A Magical Adventure and Coloring Book by Daria Song (September 13), the third in the Time series.

Peter Pauper Press: The Artist's Coloring Books series continues with Owl Town (February 15), Tranquil Trees (August 15) and Blooms, Birds, and Butterflies (November 9).

In showcasing "5 Rhode Island bookstores to visit," the Providence Journal noted: "Independent bookstores work hard to do what Amazon can't. They offer story times for children, sponsor local author events, and order titles selected by teachers for book fairs and classrooms. And independent sellers of new books have found that by offering gifts and toys as well as books, they become one-stop shopping destinations."

Simon & Schuster's Off the Shelf offers a great video of indie booksellers talking about their favorite backlist books that they brought to Winter Institute 11's inaugural Backlist Book Swap. The books cover a range of subjects and are from a range of publishers. See some of your favorite booksellers talking books here.

"It's not easy being a small, local business," but Dorothy Sim-Broder, owner of Written Words Bookstore, Shelton, Conn., "seems to have found the 'secret sauce,' " the Daily Voice reported.

"We're a book-loving family," she said. "At small bookstores, we try to expand your horizons. We want to expose you to authors you haven't heard of, ones that might not be a best seller. We all have our favorites, and we're constantly reading."

Sim-Broder added: "More independent bookstores are cropping up as the electronic generation of readers are discovering the joy of holding a print book in their hands, marveling in the new sensation.... Shelton is very fortunate to have 'Celebrate Shelton,' which helps shine the spotlight on small independents like us. There is strength in numbers and we are a louder voice when we come together, so the support system is there.... I'll be the first to admit that we're still here after nine years because we have wonderful loyal customers, strategic marketing partnerships, shop local campaigns, creative in-house events and a timeless product: books."

The 5-Day Real Food Detox: A Simple, Delicious Plan for Fast Weight Loss, Banished Cravings, and Glowing Skin by Nikki Sharp (Ballantine Books).

Today:
Fresh Air: Elaine C. Kamarck, author of Primary Politics: Everything You Need to Know about How America Nominates Its Presidential Candidates, 2nd Edition (Brookings Institution Press, $20, 9780815727750).

Tomorrow:
Diane Rehm: Manisha Sinha, author of The Slave's Cause: A History of Abolition (Yale University Press, $37.50, 9780300181371).

Netflix has picked up the new animated version of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's classic book The Little Prince "after Paramount Pictures unexpectedly dropped the film from its schedule only days before its planned theatrical release," Deadline reported, adding: "The promise of a wide domestic release through a studio had been a key part of the producers' pitch to investors and buyers when the ambitious film was being put together." Paramount's decision to drop the film "came out of blue," leaving both director Mark Osborne and producers Dimitri Rassam and Aton Soumache surprised.

The Little Prince, which features a voice cast that includes Jeff Bridges, Rachel McAdams, Paul Rudd, Marion Cotillard, James Franco and Benicio del Toro, "performed well in its native France and other international territories, earning $100 million to date," Deadline wrote.

Shortlists in three age categories have been announced for the UKLA Book Awards, which are often referred to as the "teachers' Carnegie Medal." Twelve teachers, nominated from the 60 involved in the shortlisting, will now form the final judging panel. The three winners will be named July 8 during the UKLA 52nd International Conference in Bristol. View the 2016 shortlists in full here.

Daniel Handler is the author of five novels, including Why We Broke Up (Little, Brown), which won a Michael L. Printz Honor for literary excellence in young adult literature. His most recent novel is We Are Pirates (Bloomsbury), released in paperback February 11, 2016. As Lemony Snicket, he is the author of far too many books, supposedly for children, including A Series of Unfortunate Events and All the Wrong Questions. Handler lives in San Francisco with his wife, illustrator Lisa Brown, and their son.

On your nightstand now:

I always have one book I'm reading, one book of poetry and one book I'm reading slowly to savor. This week it's James Baldwin's The Last Interview, Tomaž Šalamun's The Four Questions of Melancholy and Carole Maso's Ava, respectively.

Favorite book when you were a child:

Dino Buzzati's The Bears' Famous Invasion of Sicily and Zilpha Keatley Snyder's The Headless Cupid or anything else full of mystery and secrets.

Your top five authors:

Haruki Murakami, Jose Saramago, Mary Robison, Joy Williams and William Maxwell--but don't tell Toni Morrison, Vladimir Nabokov, Rachel Ingalls, Raymond Chandler and P.G. Wodehouse.

Book you've faked reading:

Various books by friends.

Book you're an evangelist for:

Tom Drury's The Black Brook, a wise and hilarious and melancholy book which is overlooked even by fans of Tom Drury. I press it into the hands of strangers.

Book you've bought for the cover:

All the marvelous Dalkey Archive Press titles with spiffy Danielle Dutton-designed covers.

Book you hid from your parents:

Anaïs Nin's Delta of Venus, which gave me vastly unrealistic expectations--not of sex, thank goodness, but about being broke.

Book that changed your life:

My high school English teacher pressed Elizabeth Bishop's Geography III into my hands, and I've been drunk on poetry ever since.

Favorite line from a book:

I hated childhood
I hate adulthood
And I love being alive.
--Mary Ruefle, "Provenance"

Five books you'll never part with:

Rachel Ingalls, Mrs. Caliban
Virginia Woolf, Mrs. Dalloway
William Maxwell, Time Will Darken It
Haruki Murakami, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
Horacio Castellanos Moya, Dance with Snakes

Book you most want to read again for the first time:

Chris Adrian's The Children's Hospital. An enormous book full of incident and heart. I wish I could fall on my head and forget it so I could read it again without knowing what will happen.

Zomorod Yousefzadeh hasn't "met anyone who has moved so many times before sixth grade." Her peripatetic upbringing has already encompassed long distances--not just in miles, but across cultural, social and political divides, as well. Originally from Abadan, Iran, her family moved to Compton, Calif., back to Iran, back to Compton, and is currently settling into a Newport Beach condo.

That summer of 1978, Zomorod renames herself Cindy, after Brady Bunch Cindy--"the most normal American name I knew": "It's not like I'm trying to pretend that I'm not Iranian. I just want people to ask questions about me when we meet, not about where I'm from." After a brief, less-than-genuine relationship with the girl next door, Cindy's still-friendless state makes her entry into Lincoln Junior High "a terrible, horrible, very bad day." Thankfully, Cindy's evident love of books--she's clearly quoting from Judith Viorst's 1972 classic, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day--soon leads her to find fellow booklover Carolyn: "only bookworms get excited over other bookworms." Cindy adapts to middle school, balancing her parents' expectations--including being her mother's translator--with fitting in as a "normal" tween. With Carolyn as her guide and sometime protector, Cindy discovers taco nights, Girl Scouts, Halloween, sleepaway camp and more.

And then her home country is in revolution: the Shah is ousted, Ayatollah Khomeini takes brutal control and Americans are held hostage for 444 days. Being Iranian in the U.S. becomes a matter of survival: Cindy's father loses his engineering job and can't find another, family funds quickly dwindle, bumper stickers proclaiming "Iranians: Go Home!" seem ubiquitous. In the midst of such public rage, Cindy will need to remember her inner Blanche Dubois, quoting "the best sentence ever" she learned in drama class: " 'I always depend on the kindness of strangers.' "

Memoirist Firoozeh Dumas--her Funny in Farsi (2003) was a New York Times bestseller--makes her middle-grade fiction debut with familiar content, thoughtfully adapted for younger readers. Her author's note reveals the semi-autobiographical nature of her novel, with the added clarification that "[a]ll the historical facts are true." Through Cindy's feisty, observant voice, Dumas distills a difficult chapter from recent history into an accessible coming-of-age novel infused with resonating issues that continue to affect today's youth, from bullying to isolation, racism, activism, multi-generational challenges and asserting independence.

Minus the cell phones and social media, Cindy's 1970s story is just as timely decades later--because, alas, xenophobic myopia hasn't vanished in the 21st century. Deftly mixing droll humor ("Please excuse Cindy from the test today. Our country just had a revolution."), reality checks (a dead rodent left on her family's doorstep as a warning), and gracious empathy ("people... are not truly horrible; they just need a geography class, a passport, and a few foreign friends"), Dumas draws on the nurturing power of family and friends to prove It Ain't So Awful indeed. --Terry Hong, Smithsonian BookDragon

Discover: Memoirist Firoozeh Dumas's middle-grade fiction debut introduces a spunky Iranian transplant in southern California during the Iranian hostage crisis.