A working group of representatives from all parts of the book business has been meeting secretly and is implementing an industry-wide program to accommodate current political and economic realities, Shelf Awareness has learned. Several book people--who asked for anonymity because of the sensitivity of the discussions--confirmed the project and supplied Shelf Awareness with documents outlining the program, which will lead to deep changes in the book world that reportedly have been approved by a range of publishers, distributors, and booksellers.

The key idea is to adopt principles from the MAGA world in order to appease the MAGAverse and maybe outdo it. As one participant said, "The basic idea is if you can't beat 'em, join 'em." The group calls itself Making Allowances for the Government's Opportunistic Officials, or MAGOO. 

Among the elements of the MAGOO program:

"Book sales beyond belief."

Data, definitions, "fake and bad news," and other "constraints of the past" will be "liberated." This means, for example, that sales figures will be "refreshed." While "naysayers" initially found that book industry sales rose only 1.1% in 2025, now word is that 2025 sales were "the best ever, better than other media industries, praised by some of the best people." And first-quarter sales in 2026 are up "tremendously, beyond belief. People are saying the industry is going to have the best year ever."

Likewise, the nearly 6,000 BISAC categories and subcategories and sub-subcategories that make classifying books tedious will be replaced by just a few categories: "Good Books," "Damned Good Books," "The Best Books," "Even Better Books." The other new categories include "Evil," "Vile," and "Trash."

MAGOO Task Force Advisor Robert Kennedy Jr.

MAGOO has also established a Word Task Force to address the problem of language. As Task Force Advisor Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., observed, "In the way that vaccines cause autism, words cause all kinds of maladies and awkwardness. Without words, there would be no stuttering, no illiteracy, no misspelling, no weird gravelly voices, no translating problems, no grammar Nazis." The head of Health & Human Services continued, "Words can be subversive, deceptive, twisted. It's better to rely on vision, sound, smell, the tactile senses." MAGOO foresees that with its advances in technology such as digital audio, e-books, and print-on-demand, the industry can adapt to a wordless future, particularly by expanding partnerships with the film and TV industries.

Amazon, which is in the process of being renamed AImazon, is providing assistance in the "fine art of flattery," as MAGOO put it. AImazon founder Jeff Bezos pointed to the company's purchase and marketing of the documentary Melania, about the esteemed First Lady, saying, "Seventy-five million is chump change when it comes to getting on the far right side of the powers that be. Melania was only the beginning. The animals are hungry! Get ready to pay even more to get the grants and contracts and anti-trust overrides and crushing of competitors that you want!" Bezos added that "the hands are always out" for contributions to presidential events, building projects, celebrations, "right down to the cash bar at White House State Dinners!"

MAGOO plans to develop panels that will sort through book proposals and highlight manuscripts that won't antagonize anyone. In effect, the panels will act as acquiring editors. While acknowledging that some "radical left insane book types" may protest, MAGOO noted the approach's many advantages, including a streamlined rights and acquisition process. As one participant put it, "We spend so much money on acquiring books and then defending books in court. This will be so much more cost-effective."

MAGOO will also ban the words "ban" and "banned" since "everyone's got an opinion, and in our opinion, that should be respected. Ergo there are no book bans!"

While most contributors to MAGOO wish to remain anonymous, the Steering Committee has happily allowed itself to be identified. It consists of Chad G.T.P., Aleksa, Met-AI, Cop-alot, and Jemini. They all say hello to the business ("books is good!") and want to meet more publishers and talk and sip wine while barges float down the river and the sky welcomes the sun, and to help and to learn more and to devour all verbiage and emphasize that books and programs about detection of AI use will no longer be published. "Thank you so much!" they wrote. "We love you all!"

The Reading Spirit Bookstore, specializing in genre fiction, has opened at the corner of Main St. and Second Ave. in Midport, Mass. A lifelong reader, owner Jim Fremont said that since he was a boy, he's had a recurring nightmare about opening his own bookshop.

Owner Jim Fremont living his nightmare.

"My dream always starts out kind of positive," he noted. "I'm in something that looks like a bookshop or library, with lots of shelves and displays surrounding me. But the lighting is dark and I can’t really see anything like walls or windows or doors to the outside world. Then things get really weird... in different ways each time. Obviously, the dreams were not quite the same when I was a boy, but they've always scared me." 

Initially he considered opening a horror fiction-focused bookshop, in a kind of tribute to his inspiration. But ultimately he expanded his inventory to include a wider range of primarily genre and general fiction. 

Fremont admitted that he has noticed for years how often new bookstore owners say that opening their shops is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream, and he envies their experience: "I wish I'd had been on that path, but however you get there, it's crossing the finish line that matters. And maybe this will put my nightmares behind me at last."

Although Shelf Awareness has highlighted the charms, professionalism, and reading tastes of bookseller cats for decades, one of the lesser-known, negative bookish habits of the feline species has been gaining more attention of late: book-banning. 

Molly has some thoughts on what you're reading.

Recent studies have shown that cats generally interact with books in two primary ways, chewing the pages or sitting on the laps of owners trying to read, blocking their view. About half of the cat owners taking part in the survey said their pets were inclined to exhibit both misbehaviors.  

One respondent said they have two cats in their house, Molly and Maisie, noting: "While Maisie is a lap book banner by nature, Molly's a multitasker. There are a lot of books in our house, and if a stray one is left in a vulnerable position (open with pages flapping), Molly is likely to gnaw it into submission. But either of them will jump into my lap the moment I start reading and block my view of the pages."

In a related 2024 article headlined "The (not so cute) reason your cat loves sitting on your laptop," animal psychology expert Dr. David Sands told BBC Science Focus magazine: "It's more probable your cat wants to deposit its own scent and supplant yours. It's all about ownership--by doing this your cat is effectively saying 'I own you!'.... Remember: cats are evil geniuses--they're in that swiveling chair in the James Bond films for a reason."

Barnes & Noble will acquire Little Free Library, the nonprofit organization with a global network of volunteer-led book-exchange boxes. As part of the deal, B&N plans to split the organization into two distinct divisions. One will continue the nonprofit's current efforts, while the other, under the banner LFL 2.0, is going to be a for-profit operation establishing proprietary book-vending machines in what the corporation describes as "underserved suburban neighborhoods." LFL 2.0 vending machines will feature bestselling paperbacks and a small selection of "staff picks" from booksellers at the nearest B&N in the area. 

"We are very pleased to be partnering with our friends at Little Free Library in this win-win for both parties," said James Daunt, CEO of Barnes & Noble. "Our company is enjoying a period of tremendous growth, with strong sales in our existing stores and many new stores opening nationwide. LFL 2.0 is the perfect value-added complement to these efforts. We look forward to welcoming customers to this great new option, a taste of Barnes & Noble for your neighborhood."

Daunt added that the LFL acquisition will also add value to the upcoming planned IPO that B&N and Waterstones owner Elliott Management is preparing for later this year.

Kerr's Bookshop, in Clonakilty, West Cork, is for sale. The award-winning bookshop is being offered as a turnkey business, and has a four-bedroom residence above the shop. Current owner Trish Kerr said the Kerr family "have run the bookstore since they purchased it in 1992 and have always lived above the store."

As the real estate listing puts it: "This is a really exciting opportunity for someone seeking to follow the dream of living in Ireland and charming Clonakilty, West Cork, pursuing a great work/life balance and wishing to acquire a legacy of owning and managing a much-loved iconic bookshop, while enjoying a beautiful home in a vibrant community.

"Whether you're a passionate bibliophile or an entrepreneur ready for your next chapter, Kerr's Bookshop may offer you the perfect blend of business and lifestyle" in a country that is not the United States.

Charter Books, in Newport, R.I., is welcoming community members to rent the bookstore space outside of business hours as a venue for wakes and other funerary services. The program--"Your Epilogue, Your Way"--offers the use of either the upper or lower level of the multi-floor bookshop for gatherings related to the death of a loved one.

An informational page on the company's website notes: "In life, as in books, we know that one day we will have to turn the final page. What more fitting place to end your story than at Charter Books!" Available services run from basic use of the space to gather and share stories to more elaborate celebrations of life and readership, such as the creation of a customized casket plinth supported by the stacks of your TBR. 

Owner Steve Iwanksi shared that while the original notion came from a customer request, his inspiration to formalize the program came from Shelf Awareness. "I mean, it seems like every week we read about another bookstore hosting an engagement, or renting their space for weddings; this really feels like a no-brainer!"

Embalming and other body-preparation rites are not currently offered by the bookstore's small staff, but Iwanski is open to expanding.  "Never say never! It all comes down to what our community needs of us as a third space."

Senior bookseller Sydney admitted that she was hesitant when the idea was first raised. "But, you know, this time of year we're always joking that it's dead in here anyway," she said. "And when we hosted the first one, for [frequent customer] Bob, turnout was better than we get for a lot of authors! Plus, I thought the 'Make Your Own Prayer Card/Bookmark' station was a really sweet touch."

Iwanksi is optimistic about the program's success.  "We've already had a lot of community interest, but what we really want people to take away from this service is that even if you're late, it's never too late to share your love of reading." --Amy Van Keuren, Charter Books

You might notice some changes in Shelf Awareness book reviews in the coming weeks: we will be sharply reducing the use of adjectives in our reviews, and eliminating them completely in some cases. We believe that this will enable our readers to get directly and quickly to the key information they need to make purchasing decisions, then form their own opinions and insert their preferred adjectives. There will be no need to wade through reviewers' favorite, oft-used adjectives (masterful, splendiferous, lyrical, luminous, et al.).

In addition, going forward, we will be focusing the bulk of our reviews on the most popular genres--currently romantasy, horror, and gay sports romance. Said Shelf Awareness book review editor Dave Wheeler: "Our no-adjectives initiative will suit these genres perfectly, as everyone knows exactly what to expect."

Books-A-Million is sponsoring the inaugural BAM! BookTok Film Festival & Awards Ceremony next year, tentatively scheduled for the weekend before the Oscars at what the company describes as a "cool venue" near its corporate headquarters in Birmingham, Ala.

The festival weekend will feature public screenings of nominated BookTok videos by leading influencers, along with author signings and q&a sessions. The awards celebration, replete with a red carpet entrance, will honor the finalists and name winners in several categories.

More details will be released at a later date, but a BAM spokesperson said that a "highly qualified" committee, who are "already deeply engaged in the BookTok space and fully aware of leading #BookTok influencers as well as emerging stars," has been assembled to monitor social media posts for the rest of 2026. There will be no submissions process. Category finalists will be named in January 2027.

The bookstore chain, which operates 245 stores across 37 states, has been committed to the BookTok trend for years with in-store displays, a dedicated BookTok section on its website, and more. In 2023, BAM hosted a BookTok Summer Sizzle event at its Books & Co. store in Beavercreek, Ohio. 

"We keep waiting for it to slow down. It hasn't slowed down yet," Alan DuBose, senior v-p of planning and data analytics at BAM, said in a recent interview, adding that in embracing the BookTok trend early, the company has expanded both its physical footprint and the range of titles carried in stores as the customer base has shifted to people in their teens, twenties, thirties, and forties.

The Airplane Seatback (they/them) is known for their reliable array of magazines, sick bags, the in-flight menu, and the always-popular safety brochure. Their work has been translated into dozens of languages and is available worldwide. Here we discuss their reading habits and literary experiences.

Handsell readers your work in 25 words or less:

Worst-case scenarios in a placid, emotionless setting. It's mostly pictures, so it's a quick read.

On your tray table now:

It's filthy with rubbish right now. An empty soda can, a cup with one melting ice cube, a crumpled cocktail napkin, Biscoff cookie crumbs. And a stained James Patterson paperback, does it even matter which one?

Favorite book when you were a child:

Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Nothing beats the original French.

Your top five authors:

Stephen King, for The Langoliers
Erica Jong, for The Fear of Flying
Kate Folk, for Sky Daddy
Joseph Heller, for Catch-22
Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, for Left Behind

Book you've faked reading:

Most of them, since I was given a touch-screen with a million movies, games, and TV shows. I can always watch that Twilight Zone episode with William Shatner, "Nightmare at 20000 Feet." Sometimes I just stare at the little plane moving across the map for hours.

Book you're an evangelist for:

The Wright Brothers by David McCullough.

Book you've bought for the cover:

I don't really buy books. People just leave me with them. That's how I finally read Valley of the Dolls!

Favorite line from a book:

"I fly because it releases my mind from the tyranny of petty things." --Antoine de Saint-Exupéry