Giveaways
Erin L. Schneider
Goodreads Giveaway: SUMMER OF SLOANE
Goodreads Giveaway: SUMMER OF SLOANE

USA Today's Top 150 Bestselling Books as of 02.13.2011

Thursday, February 17, 2011: According to USA TODAY, the following list contains the top 25 best selling books (out of 150) - based on sales through Sunday, 02/13/2011.  For the complete list of 150 books for the week or just to check out more information - plus reviews, book news and a searchable archive of USA TODAY's Best-Selling Books list - visit their website. 

Note of the week:  Same as last week, YA covets 28% of the top 25 books. And it's not a surprise to see I AM NUMBER FOUR, by Pitticus Lore swoop in and take the #20 spot - what with the release of the movie nationwide, tomorrow. If you haven't read my review of I AM NUMBER FOUR (it can be found in last month's blog entries), I will say this book was an a-mazing read for me. Putting aside the political drama behind James Frey (one of the two authors behind pen name Pitticus Lore), this was one of my most favorite reads since THE HUNGER GAMES - and I can't wait to see the movie and see how it translates.

My Review: Awakened - House of Night #8 by P.C. & Kristen Cast

AWAKENED - House of Night #8, by P.C. & Kristen Cast

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Goodreads Summary:

At the start of Awakened, the pulse-pounding eighth installment of the bestselling House of Night series, Zoey has returned, mostly whole, from the Otherworld to her rightful place as High Priestess at the House of Night. Her friends are just glad to have her back, but after losing her human consort, Heath, will Zoey—or her relationship with her super- hot Warrior, Stark—ever be the same? Stevie Rae is drawn even closer to Rephaim, the Raven Mocker with whom she shares a mysterious and powerful Imprint, but he is a dangerous secret that isolates her from her school, her red fledglings, and even her best friends. When the dark threat of Neferet—who is coming closer and closer to achieving her twisted goal of immortality—and Kalona returns, what will it take to keep the House of Night from being lost forever, and what will one desperate girl do to keep her heart from being irreparably broken?

Review:

Book #8 in the House of Night series was a big disappointment for me. The first few books in the series were entertaining - what with the House of Night being a finishing school of sorts, for vampires. But I now find that I'm growing tired of the plot and the series has started to drag - book 8 (keep in mind, all books are around 275 pages in length), and the MC Zoey, is still somewhere around her junior year of high school (I think? it's hard to keep track, since the concept of the school has fallen off from the plot)...the books started with her in her sophomore year, so you can see, she's not progressed far in time. With that being said - SO much has happened to her in this fictional "year" - enough that it could've spanned her entire time in high school.

It's Official: Borders Files For Bankruptcy

Wednesday, 2.16: As a follow-up to my post on Monday - According to Publisher's Marketplace (and many other locations on the web), Borders has indeed, filed for bankruptcy. Here's PM's released story from this morning:

Borders Files for Bankruptcy; Owes Top Publishers $230 Million, and Will Close About 200 Stores

Borders formally filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a Manhattan Federal Court, listing total debt of $1.29 billion and supposed assets of $1.275 billion. Among the top 30 unsecured creditors listed in the filing, book publishers and distributed are owed roughly $230 million (see below for the full list).

Borders says in their announcement that it "has received commitments for $505 million in Debtor-in-Possession (DIP) financing led by GE Capital, Restructuring Finance. Restructuring Finance. This financing should enable Borders to meet its obligations going forward so that our stores continue to be competitive for customers in terms of goods, services and the shopping experience."

For customers, they expect to honor Borders Rewards program, gift cards and other customer programs and they expect "to make employee payroll and continue its benefits programs for its employees."

The company says they had 642 stores open as of January 29. In their press release, they say they expect to close "approximately 30 percent" of those stores, or roughly 200 locations, "in the next several weeks."

Scholastic Book Talk: February 2011 Best Sellers

YOUNG ADULT

1. Beastly by Alex Flinn ($5.00 in TeenRC)
2. I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore ($12.00 in TeenRC)
3. Everwild by Neal Shusterman ($6.00 in TeenRC)
4. North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley ($8.00 in TeenRC)
5. Prom and Prejudice by Elizabeth Eulberg ($5.00 in TeenRC)

 

 

MIDDLE GRADE

1. War Horse by Michael Morpurgo ($3.00 in Arrow)
2. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne ($9.00 inArrow)
3. Al Capone Shines My Shoes by Gennifer Choldenko ($5.00 in Arrow)
4. My Fake Boyfriend Is Better Than Yours by Kristina Springer ($5.00 in Arrow)
5. The Crowfield Curse by Pat Walsh ($5.00 in Arrow)

 

 

Scholastic Book Talk: January 2011 Best Sellers

For the month of January, here are Scholastics top book picks in the Children's / Young Adult categories:

Young Adult

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins ($7 in TAB)
2. Rules by Cynthia Lord ($3 in Arrow)
3. Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine ($4 in TAB)
4. Al Capone Shines My Shoes by Gennifer Choldenko ($5 in TAB)
5. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins ($7 in TAB)

 

 

Middle Grade

1. Saving Zasha by Randi Barrow ($4 in Arrow)
2. Rules by Cynthia Lord ($3 in Arrow)
3.  Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan ($4 in Arrow)
4. Al Capone Shines My Shoes by Gennifer Choldenko ($5 inTAB)
5. Heroes of Olympus: The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan ($12 inTAB)

 

When Will Borders File For Bankruptcy?

Monday, 2.14: Posted on Publisher's Lunch today, the discussion is no longer will Border's file for bankruptcy, but instead, when will they?
According to the Wall Street Journal, that may happen sooner than later - and in my honest opinion, this is a sad day...not that it wasn't to be expected, with the surge in sales of e-books. 
As we move forward with all things technology and electronic, will bookstores go by way of the newspaper and become obsolete? Most likely, yes. What are your thoughts?
See below excerpt for more information.


When Will Borders File For Bankruptcy? As Early As Today, Or Later This Week, Reports Say

The WSJ reported Friday afternoon that Borders "could file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as soon as Monday or Tuesday," but also cautioned "the filing http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/behttp://www.publishersmarketplace.com/delayed a few days." Whenever the bankruptcy filing takes place, it will trigger the imminent liquidation and closure of a significant portion of their store base--now predicted to cover 200 of the company's stores (with an option to close 50 more), among other restructuring efforts. That would leave a base of roughly 400 to 450 stores remaining. If it comes before the end of this month, vendors who received checks at the end of November may have to fight to keep those funds by arguing that they were "incurred in the ordinary course of business." And anyone who was paid in December will likely have to return those funds, since Bankruptcy Code indicates that "the debtor is presumed to have been insolvent on and during the 90 days immediately preceding the date of the filing of the petition."