In the third quarter ended September 30, net sales rose 23.7%, to $69.9 billion, and net income fell 27.6%, to $2.1 billion. In large part because earnings per share were $4.23--32¢ below analysts' consensus and the first drop in profits in two years--shares of Amazon fell more than 5%, to $1,680 per share, in after-hours trading.

The expansion of the company's Prime program, guaranteeing one-day free shipping for members, is the major cause of the company's decline in earnings. As the Wall Street Journal put it, "Amazon's profit machine sputtered again after more than two years of surging growth, weighed down by the tech giant's heavy investment into reducing shipping times for retail customers."

The company projects increased spending of about $1.5 billion on Prime shipping in the current quarter, which includes the holiday season. The emphasis on Prime shipping has also led to an increase in hiring, and the company now has some 750,000 employees.

Jefferies analyst Brent Thill told the Journal: "Investors were beginning to get used to the new Amazon of getting better bottom-line upside. Now, we're back to the old Amazon, which is bottom-line downside but big investments. For short-term investors it's a bummer, but for long-term investors, they realize that with Amazon these investments usually pay off."

The company has said that with one-day free shipping, Prime customers buy more and spend more.

Kathryn Court (photo: Lynn Rogan)

Kathryn Court, president and publisher of Penguin Books, is retiring at the end of the year after 42 years at the company. After working in publishing in London for a few years, she moved to New York and joined Penguin Books in 1977. After two years, she became editorial director; then editor-in-chief of Viking Penguin in 1984; senior v-p, publisher and editor-in-chief of Penguin Books in 1992; and added the title of president in 2000.

Allison Dobson, president of Penguin Publishing Group, wrote that as Penguin president, "Kathryn leads a team that has built a robust and storied Penguin Classics program; a massive and luminous backlist of Penguin reprints of Viking and Penguin Press front list titles; and a list of Penguin paperback originals which combine literary excellence and commercial quality. The Penguin Books that Kathryn leads today is a testament to her understanding of the marketplace for the best fiction and nonfiction writing, and to her tireless advocacy for writers and their readers through her work with the New York Public Library and her service on the board of the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses."

She has edited, published and worked with, among others, John le Carré, J.M. Coetzee, Dava Sobel, Craig Johnson, William Trevor, Sebastian Barry, Antony Beevor, Mary McGarry Morris and Reinaldo Arenas.

Brian Tart

As a result of Kathryn Court's retirement, Brian Tart's responsibilities will expand to include overseeing the Penguin Books publishing programs, and he will serve as president and publisher of both the Viking and Penguin imprints, effective at the beginning of next year. He became head of Viking in 2015, after serving as president and publisher of the Dutton, Avery and Gotham imprints.

In addition, Patrick Nolan is being promoted to v-p, deputy publisher Penguin Books.

Penguin Books will continue to be the home for trade paperback publications of Penguin Press hardcover editions, though this program now will report to Ann Godoff, president and editor-in-chief, Penguin Press.

Allison Dobson commented: "In many ways, more formally bringing together Viking and Penguin organizationally is rooted in the original merger of Viking and Penguin in 1977. While other considerations eventually altered that structural alignment, in recent years, the two programs have become closer than ever, with all Viking hardcovers published as paperbacks under the Penguin Books imprint. Viking and Penguin share publicity and marketing teams, and many of the editorial staff acquire and publish titles across both lists--a practice we will continue to encourage."

"It's been said that books cannot die. The tornado that tore through North Dallas on Sunday is testing that idea, but fans of Interabang Books are rallying online to keep the store they love alive," reported KERA News, adding that the "store's walls were no longer standing; the roof was nonexistent, and wet, dirty looking insulation was pasted onto just about every flat surface within eyeshot."

When general manager Kyle Hall saw Interabang Sunday night, "that's when I realized, really, that it had been a direct hit. I mean, this wasn't a tornado being nearby. This must've been a tornado sitting on top of all of this."

Now the recovery is underway. Noting that all of his employees are safe and ready to get back to sharing recommendations with fellow bookworms in a temporary location, Hall said, "We've all been in touch. We're probably going to see each other on Thursday. And the expectation is that everybody will be back at work in short order. Seriously."

His optimism has been enhanced by customer support. "The store has gotten a massive outpouring of support from people via e-mail and social media. Fans are encouraging people to make online purchases to help keep the shop going," KERA reported.

"It's obviously not possible to do any operations from this location," Hall noted. "But we're trying to find another to continue to host authors, to continue to have our book club meetings, and to, you know, still serve the same neighborhood--the same community." He also said booksellers are integral to the neighborhood and he wants his bookstore to re-open in the Preston Royal Shopping Center to continue that legacy.

Yesterday Interabang tweeted: "Thank you to everyone who has reached out with their words of support and offers of help! You can continue to support us while we rebuild by

1. ordering online through our virtual store
2. getting a @librofm account that supports Interabang Books
3. continuing to follow us on our social media channels for a big announcement coming in a matter of days
4. sign up to get our e-newsletter on our website
5. sharing this information with your friends."

Several authors and publishers on Twitter are offering gifts to people who buy a book from Interabang, including Lara Prescott, Flynn Coleman and Unnamed Press. Shea Serrano, who had an author event at Interabang on October 16, has mustered his FOH Army to support the cause.

"We've never been in the business of competition," Commonplace Books Fort Worth posted on Facebook yesterday: "Community is the heart of our bookstore & the reason we open the doors every morning. Last weekend, a tornado ripped through the Dallas area & left our fellow bookstore in pieces. One small way we've found we can help as they navigate this process is by encouraging you, our patrons, to order anything you're wanting, but isn't available here in our shop, through their online ordering which you can find at their website! We're with you, @interabangbooks!"

Rolf Zettersten

Rolf Zettersten, senior v-p and publisher of Hachette Nashville, will retire this fall after nearly 20 years with the company. He will continue to lead the Nashville division's five imprints until Hachette names a successor.

"I am profoundly grateful to my Hachette colleagues and to the wonderful authors and agents with whom I have worked," Zettersten said. "It's been a remarkable career and I am cheering for the continued growth and development of this program which means so much to me."

Zettersten joined Hachette in 2000 with the goal of establishing a Christian publishing program. He was instrumental in opening the company's Nashville office and launching the imprint that would go on to become FaithWords, which publishes authors such as Joyce Meyer, Joel Osteen and T.D. Jakes. In 2004 Zetterson helped debut Center Street, which began as a publisher of general market authors but in 2017 pivoted to a conservative political and military imprint. And in 2018, Zettersten played a major role in bringing Worthy Publishing into the Hachette family.

"I want to thank Rolf for leading the Nashville division to reach remarkable heights with their publishing programs--selling more than 100 million copies since the division's inception--and for his many contributions as a member of the Executive Management Board," wrote Hachette CEO Michael Pietsch in an announcement to staff. "Please join me in wishing Rolf great success and happiness in his next chapter."

Owner Jojo Goerner will close the Moosterious Emporium, an independent bookstore in Haines, Alaska, selling new and old literature, sheet music, art supplies and more, at the end of November, KHNS reported.

Goerner plans to move her business to a new location, change its name to the Chilkat Lounge, and pivot to focus on art retail, music retail and music and art lessons and education. The bookstore was originally called the Babbling Book and the Dragon's Nook, and Goerner bought it from previous owner Darcee Messano last November.

At the same time, Sitka, Alaska, resident Amy Kane plans to move to Haines and open a new bookstore in the storefront that used to house the Moosterious Emporium. She hopes to have the business open in February and plans to do renovations on the building, including replacing the floors and putting on a new coat of paint.

"I heard rumors that maybe Jojo wanted to move on from the Moosterious Emporium," Kane told KHNS. "I got really excited and I started putting out feelers to see if I could maybe get that space to have a bookstore again."

The Barnes & Noble in North Charleston, S.C., will close early next year, likely in February, according to the Post and Courier. The 25,046-sq.-ft. space in the Northwoods Marketplace Shopping Center is being taken over by discount grocery chain Aldi, which has more than 11,000 stores in 20 countries and has been expanding in the U.S.

With the closing of the North Charleston store, B&N will have two stores in the Charleston area, in Mount Pleasant and West Ashley.

WORD bookstores in Brooklyn and Jersey City have launched a series of short videos on Instagram called ARC Raiders! in which authors get to peruse the advanced reading copies shelves and share recommendations and personal anecdotes about upcoming titles. The first episode features author and former WORD staffer Jami Attenberg.

"I've always been of fan of the Criterion Closet, which is about movies, and wanted to create a version like it for books," said WORD co-owner Vincent Onorati. "Plus, we have a lot of galleys to share!"

Inkwood Books in Haddonfield, N.J., had a surprise visit from singer/songwriter/poet/author/icon Patti Smith last weekend. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Smith stopped by the shop "in what owner Julie Beddingfield called a 'chance encounter' after Smith saw a copy of her own new book, Year of the Monkey, in the shop's window."

Patti Smith at Inkwood

"To my knowledge, that's the first time a really well-known person walked in," Beddingfield said. "That does not happen in Haddonfield."

Inkwood bookseller Amy Rebecca Tan said Smith had never seen one of her books in a bookshop window, and went in with her sister to thank the staff and chat. She also signed the store's three remaining copies.

"I gushed like an idiot," Tan said. "She was so sweet, and I was a mess the whole rest of the day. I literally cried after she left. I couldn't believe it." She had a photo taken with Smith and shared it on Facebook. "If I didn't take that photo, no one would believe me. I have photo evidence--and I don't know Photoshop or anything, so it's legit."

Beddingfield, who just missed Smith, said the post is the "closest thing to viral" that Inkwood has ever had online.

Paper Boat Booksellers, Seattle, Wash., shared a photo of its latest sidewalk chalkboard message: "The sun is out, no rain--Yay, we can put up our sign! Come on in!"

HoodWitch: Poems by Faylita Hicks (Acre Books).

Tomorrow:
Weekend Edition: John Kenney, author of Love Poems for People with Children (G.P. Putnam's Sons, $15, 9780593085240).

Mackenzie Davis (Halt and Catch Fire, Black Mirror) and Himesh Patel (Yesterday, The Aeronauts) have been cast in the lead roles of HBO Max's upcoming series Station Eleven, based on the novel by Emily St. John Mandel. Variety reported that Davis "will play Kirsten, a survivor of the Georgia Flu pandemic and performer in a post-apocalyptic Shakespeare troupe. Patel will play Jeevan, an unemployed lost soul who--when the Georgia Flu strikes--must become a leader."

The 10-episode limited series is expected to launch in spring 2020. Patrick Somerville is adapting the book and will serve as the showrunner. Hiro Murai is attached to direct and executive produce. Paramount Television is the studio behind the series.

The Crime Writers Association announced winners in nine categories for the 2019 Dagger Awards in London last week at a gala dinner. M.W. Craven's The Puppet Show won the Gold Dagger for best crime novel of the year, and Chris Hammer's Scrublands won the John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger for best crime novel by a first-time author. As announced earlier this year, Robert Goddard won the Diamond Dagger, which recognizes "authors whose crime writing careers have been marked by sustained excellence, and who have made a significant contribution to the genre." Check out the complete list of Dagger winners here.

---

Six finalists were announced for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year (the "Bookie"). The winner, who will be named December 5, receives £30,000 (US$38,970) and a trophy. Shortlisted authors receive a leather-bound copy of their book and £3,000 (about $3,900). This year's shortlisted titles are:

Rise of the Ultra Runners: A Journey to the Edge of Human Endurance by Adharanand Finn
The Great Romantic: Cricket and the Golden Age of Neville Cardus by Duncan Hamilton
In Sunshine or in Shadow: How Boxing Brought Hope in the Troubles by Donald McRae
Rough Magic: Riding the World's Wildest Horse Race by Lara Prior-Palmer
Commander in Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump by Rick Reilly
Position of Trust: A Football Dream Betrayed by Andy Woodward with Tom Watt

photo: Leslie Fram

Nicholas Meyer is the author of six previous novels, including The Seven-Per-Cent Solution (1975), a Doyle pastiche in which Sherlock Holmes met Sigmund Freud. The novel won the British Gold Dagger award from the British Crime Writers' Association. Two years later, Meyer received an Academy Award nomination for his screenplay of the eponymous film, which starred Nicol Williamson, Robert Duvall, Alan Arkin, Vanessa Redgrave and Laurence Olivier. Meyer's new Sherlock Holmes novel, The Adventure of the Peculiar Protocols: Adapted from the Journals of John H. Watson, M.D., was just published by Minotaur Books.

On your nightstand now:

Two books: Outrageous Good Fortune by Michael Burke, one of the most extraordinary (and well recounted!) lives I've ever read. Burke's memoir reads like a picaresque but it's all real: World War II combat, OSS and later CIA agent; manager of Ringling Bros. Circus at its height and CBS executive--and the book's not over yet!

Also Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, which my girlfriend and I are reading out loud. (Last year we did The Odyssey.)

Favorite book when you were a child:

Tough. I think we bond lastingly with works of art we experience as children. Alice in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll), The Thirteen Clocks (James Thurber) and especially, perhaps, The Three Musketeers (Alexandre Dumas). All these introduced me to worlds I longed to inhabit, characters, language and ways of being that have stayed with me my entire life. I find I never outgrown my passions; I only add to them.

Your top five authors:

Shakespeare (I prefer listening or watching to reading), Arthur Conan Doyle (I have a weakness for Victorian prose), Mark Twain, Philip Roth, George Eliot and Leo Tolstoy. (I know, that's six).

Book you've faked reading:

Finnegans Wake. I've tried. (I don't think I've boasted of having read it so much as whined about its impenetrability.)

Book you're an evangelist for:

The Little Drummer Girl by John le Carré (filmed twice; neither successful, in my opinion). When I first read it, years ago, I thought, this book makes the case that the only novel of relevance is the political novel. It moved and unsettled me as much as anything I've ever read. (Move over, The Master and Margarita.)

Book you've bought for the cover:

Titles as much as covers have lured me. The Count of Monte Cristo (Dumas)--that sounds so cool. The Maltese Falcon (Hammett) (What could that be??). The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald).

Book you hid from your parents:

I bought a lot with bodice-ripper covers that I hid from my parents and used for private purposes. I remember one called The Bizarre Happenings at Harlington Manor.

Book that changed your life:

Innumerable books have changed my life, but three I knew were changing me as I read them: Temptation, by someone calling himself Jon Pen (real name, I later learned, Székely János), translated from the Hungarian. I thought it was another bodice-ripper but it was the book that introduced me to poverty and desperation, and did so more vividly--at the time--than Dickens. That book has never left me. I've re-read it, now less shocked than I was at age 14, to be sure, but still.

Around the World in Eighty Days. I was already a Jules Verne fan, but after the book, gorged on the movie version, which set my life's path--movies.

And War and Peace (Leo Tolstoy), the greatest novel of all time--all humanity between two covers.

Favorite line from a book:

"My life began like a penny thriller, with a plot to murder me." (from Temptation--see above--on his mother's attempts to abort him.)

Books you'll never part with:

War and Peace (Leo Tolstoy), The Human Stain (Philip Roth), Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Mark Twain), Middlemarch (George Eliot).

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

The Great Gatsby. Is it really as good as I originally experienced it?

What happens to the abundance of clothes, toys, books and appliances donated to Goodwill and other charitable organizations? While people may believe that their unwanted stuff will find new homes in the community, the reality is that drop-off is often the first stop in a global and mostly hidden multibillion-dollar industry.

"In 2015, Americans tossed out 24.1 billion pounds of furniture and furnishings," writes Adam Minter (Junkyard Planet). "Along with all those old sofas went 32 billion pounds of textiles--including clothes, bedsheets, towels, and wiping rags--and 45.3 billion pounds of what the Environmental Protection Agency calls 'miscellaneous durables.' "

Secondhand: Travels in the New Global Garage Sale dives into this marketplace of excess by exploring some of the socio-economic reasons for its existence: the KonMari decluttering craze, minimalist living trends and adult children with little interest in their parents' "brown furniture," as observed by professionals specializing in "home cleanouts" after a death or downsizing.

Manufacturers also play a critical role, with questionable product expiration dates, marketing gimmicks and lifespan claims. Minter's dogged and thorough reporting into the infant car seat industry, for example, might surprise parents, as it shows that used car seats likely remain quite functional--and, most importantly, perfectly safe--despite warnings from industry groups about the need for regular replacement.

The phenomenon of "fast fashion"--trendy clothing produced rapidly and sold cheaply--has grown: "Between 2000 and 2015, global clothing production doubled, while the average times that a garment was worn before disposal declined by 36 percent." Younger generations reportedly wear an item only between one and six times before it is tossed away, either because of inferior quality or the inexpensive cost and convenience of buying new.

Armed with a passionate curiosity coupled with an investigative journalism background as a Bloomberg reporter, Minter interviews and observes dozens of buyers, sorters, cutters and shippers while tracking the journey of the approximately four million tons of used clothes exported around the world each year. Secondhand details an intricate and diverse network of operations spanning the United States, Canada, West Africa, India, Asia and many other points along the way. Minter provides an eye-opening look at the ways used clothes are sold and repurposed as furniture stuffing and rags, a high-demand product for the hospitality, automotive and healthcare fields, among others. "Nobody counts the number of wiping rags manufactured in the United States and elsewhere every year. But anyone who knows the industry acknowledges that the numbers are in the many billions, and growing.... The alternative is environmentally-unfriendly paper towels and synthetic wipes." 

In an accessible and engaging style, Secondhand unravels the complexities of a vast yet mostly hidden and often secretive enterprise of used clothes and goods. (A surprising number of Minter's sources in the field refused to give their names.) The result is an unparalleled look at the lifespan of everyday things and the unexpected ways our society's abundance of discarded items are, refreshingly, being repurposed for a second life. --Melissa Firman, writer at melissafirman.com

Shelf Talker: A thorough, insightful and investigative global journey into the complex yet fascinating secondhand industry of unwanted goods.

There was a moment at MPIBA's FallCon 2019 in Denver that I'll never forget. It occurred during the Writing the West Breakfast on Saturday, when horse trainer Ginger Gaffney, author of Half Broke (Norton, Feb. 2020), introduced herself.

"I'm a very introverted person," she said. "I didn't speak until I was seven. I could have, but as a child I thought it was a dangerous occupation to talk.... What I ended up doing was just witnessing the way humans moved and that's how I ended up being in the world. So when I'm in a space like this I spend more time looking at you than listening because it's the way inflection goes on a face, the way hands move, the way people walk. That's got a lot more language than actual words. And that makes me a very good horse trainer.... Language is movement."

As booksellers, publishers and writers, we are people for whom words matter. We are also often keen observers of human behavior, an essential trait for a gifted handseller (and we are all, to some extent, handsellers). With Gaffney's words echoing in my mind, I found myself observing the interactions among book people in a different light, and thinking that while language is most definitely movement, it's also brilliantly multi-faceted.

"It was a memorable show, and I left with so many more books than I have in recent years," Nicole Magistro of the Bookworm of Edwards, Edwards, Colo., observed. "The number of authors in attendance was astounding, and it felt more holistic than ever before. Booksellers in the same conversations with publicists, sales reps, authors, nonbook vendors and service providers made it feel like it was possible to get so much work done in Denver. The children's breakfast is always a major highlight for me."

Children's Author Breakfast: (back row, l.-r.) Rebecca Stead, David Yoon, Alan Gratz, (front, l.-r.) Isaac Fitzgerald, Sharon Robinson, & Lauren Casey of Second Star to the Right Books

While indie booksellers were praised lavishly by visiting authors, a couple of moments resonated at the Children's Author & Illustrator Breakfast.

"Books build empathy," said Alan Gratz, author of Allies (Scholastic). "Empathy leads to compassion, and compassion brings change. Books can change the world. And that's where you come in. As booksellers you are in the incredible position to put just the right book in the right hands at the right moment.... All during this trade show you'll be hearing about how amazing things start at independent bookstores and it's true. That happens every time a kid walks into your bookstore and finds exactly the right book at exactly the right time. That is what you do. That is the superpower of an exceptional bookseller."

"Handselling Outside Your Comfort Zone" panelists: (l.-r.) Maya Aurichio & Sara Knight of Maria's Bookshop, Sam Foster of Tattered Cover Book Store, & Julia Buckwalter of Back of Beyond Books

"You guys are not just booksellers or bookstore owners, as incredible as the stores are. You are really community activists," Sharon Robinson, author of Child of the Dream: A Memoir of 1963 (Scholastic), noted before leading a morning audience of bleary-eyed booksellers in a heartfelt rendition of "This Little Light of Mine," the children's gospel song. "As we talk about the importance of children finding their voice, I want them to know this was one of my favorite songs during the movement period and I want to share that with them."

"Marketing Your Store as a Safe Space" panelists: (clockwise from top left) Matt Miller of Tattered Cover Book Store, Nicole Sullivan of BookBar, Amanda Sutton of BookWorks Albuquerque, & Kirbie Bennett of Maria's Bookshop

Many of the sessions in FallCon's program this year focused on sparking dialogue among booksellers, publishers and/or writers, including Conversations with Colleagues: Round Table Discussions; Women's Voices Author Luncheon; Authors for Breakfast; PubLunch: Booksellers & Publishers Chat; and YA Lit Lunch.

"I love the new programming," said Valerie Koehler of Blue Willow Bookshop, Houston, Tex., "Having the opportunity to hear so many authors from so many genres was great. Their short pitches gave the perfect hook for all the booksellers. The trade show floor is intimate but not cramped. I found a few gift items I had not seen before. This new format should encourage more stores to bring more frontline booksellers, which is what I plan to do next year. The MPIBA folks are true friends and colleagues. It's a relaxed atmosphere with plenty of time to chat, network and problem solve store procedures and policies."

The stakes and spirits were high at Literary Trivia Challenge

"Generosity" was the key word for Catherine Weller of Weller Book Works, Salt Lake City, Utah. MPIBA's FallCon is "an event that the board, the advisory council, and the volunteers all work very hard to put on. They don't do it for themselves, nor do they do it in a vacuum. Publishers, BINC, the booksellers who contribute to BINC, and friends all make the MPIBA show like a homecoming of sorts. Some of my best friends don't live in Salt Lake City. But they're in the book industry so I see them once or twice a year. We became friends because we came together at MPIBA shows not just because of a shared passion for books, but in a spirit of mutual respect and mutual aid. There were a lot of young booksellers at this year's FallCon. I watched them step up to podiums, speak up in rooms, and form their own collegial relationships that will hopefully serve them as well as mine have served me. Evolution is pretty cool."

After the show, MPIBA's marketing & communications manager Jeremy Ellis observed: "I'm extremely proud to have a hand in growing the FallCon. It was amazingly gratifying to see so many of our colleagues come to Denver and enthusiastically participate in all the programs. As a bookseller, I took for granted the amount of planning and effort required to pull off a successful trade show. Hearing booksellers respond positively to the authors and education sessions was a thrill. I can't wait to do it again."

At MPIBA's FallCon 2019, Ginger Gaffney's "language is movement" theory seemed right at home among its language kin--reading, writing and conversation.