News Today's Book News Monday, 17th November

[AgentPete]

Today's Book News Monday, 17th November, 2025​

(NB... Monday's Book News will now include any stories not picked up on Friday). A busy end to the week sees big shifts in how books reach readers, from fast-fashion giant Shein adding a used-books storefront(!) to the looming closure of long-standing Spanish-language distributor Lectorum. Rights news is brisk on both sides of the Atlantic, with children’s and adult fiction, crime, poetry, and gothic YA all selling into 2026–27..

The Sheikh Zayed Book Award Celebrates its 20th anniversary​

Publishing Perspectives marks two decades of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, highlighting how the Abu Dhabi-based prize has become a major global platform for Arabic literature, scholarship, and translation. The piece notes the scale of submissions, the diversity of winners, and the award’s growing role in funding translations that move Arabic writing into new languages and markets.

‘Experience Over Perfection:’ How Publishers Should Approach AI Marketing​

Reporting from a Frankfurter Buchmesse panel, Publishing Perspectives outlines why AI is becoming unavoidable in publishing marketing but stresses that it must be deployed experimentally and with strong human oversight. Panelists argue that discoverability, data scarcity, and in‑house expertise are the key bottlenecks, urging publishers to prioritize testing and pragmatic workflows over polished “perfect” AI strategies.

Shein Expands into Bookselling with Alibris Partnership​

Publishers Weekly reports that Shein’s U.S. marketplace will now host more than 100,000 used and bargain titles supplied by Alibris, including “affordable textbooks,” just ahead of the holiday season. The partnership is pitched as a way to introduce books to a large Gen Z and millennial customer base already shopping the fashion site, raising fresh questions about where and how readers discover books.

Lectorum Publications to Shutter​

After more than 60 years, Lectorum, the United States’ largest independent distributor of Spanish‑language books, is closing and planning to auction an inventory of roughly 700,000 titles on 4 December. PW notes the company’s long history supplying schools, libraries, and bookstores, underscoring how the shutdown will reshape access to Spanish‑language materials across the U.S. market.

Indie Publishers Support Marginalized Authors​

A feature from Publishers Weekly profiles independent presses and imprints built to serve marginalized writers, showing how they maintain their commitments despite financial and cultural headwinds. Editors describe their lists as both sanctuary and activism, arguing that continuing to publish underrepresented voices is essential even as the broader industry becomes more risk‑averse.

Bookstores on a Mission​

Publishers Weekly spotlights “issues‑oriented” bookstores around the United States that explicitly organize around social justice, queer and trans rights, and other community causes. These shops are using events, curated shelves, and mutual‑aid style programming to turn bookselling into a hub for local organizing as well as reading.

This Week’s Bestsellers: November 17, 2025​

In the latest U.S. bestseller rundown, PW notes that country star Kenny Chesney’s memoir “Heart Life Music” debuts at number one overall, while a Wings of Fire graphic novel adaptation and a new Food Group picture book lead children’s lists. Seasonal crime and dark Christmas‑romance titles also surge, buoyed by Barnes & Noble promotions and holiday‑themed tropes.

Book Deals: Week of November 17, 2025​

The latest PW deals column rounds up notable acquisitions, from Random House’s book on New York politician Zohran Mamdani’s rise to Milkweed’s two‑book poetry deal with Pulitzer winner Forrest Gander. Other highlights include a DK baking title built around the science of perfect bakes and a cozy fantasy, “Hero Adjacent,” about an elderly wizard shepherding misfit heroes.

Two Hoots celebrates tenth anniversary with raft of acquisitions​

BookBrunch reports that Macmillan Children’s imprint Two Hoots is marking its 10th anniversary with a slate of new signings, doubling down on highly illustrated, design‑driven children’s books. Publisher Alison Ruane frames the programme as a “next chapter” built on clear creative ambition and continued faith in standout visual storytelling for young readers.

Virago to publish Sigrid Nunez’s first short story collection​

Virago has acquired “It Will Come Back to You,” the first short‑story collection by National Book Award winner Sigrid Nunez, featuring thirteen stories spanning awkward teenage crushes to mid‑life second chances. BookBrunch notes that the book extends Nunez’s incisive, character‑driven exploration of intimacy, desire, and regret into shorter forms.

HarperNorth cleans up with crime deal​

HarperNorth has bought “The Specialist: How to Clean a Crime Scene and Other Messes” by extreme cleaner Ben Giles, a nonfiction title promising lessons from 25 years on the job. Framed as part memoir, part practical guide, the book uses real‑world cases to explore how people cope with trauma, hoarding, and life’s “darker moments.”

Rough Trade buys Babak Ganjei’s debut novel On the Bus Without a Phone​

Rough Trade Books has signed Babak Ganjei’s debut novel “On the Bus Without a Phone,” described as blending surreal humour, melancholy, and self‑effacing wit. BookBrunch likens Ganjei’s sensibility to a “Brautigan for the digital age,” suggesting a cult‑favourite, offbeat voice poised to appeal to indie‑minded readers.

DK flip unveils Romina Garber’s ‘gothic sensation’​

DK’s FLIP list has acquired Romina Garber’s YA novel “The Last Vampire,” billed as “Crave meets Pride and Prejudice” with a gothic, romantic twist. The deal underlines UK publishers’ continued appetite for high‑concept paranormal romance with strong crossover potential for older teens and young adult readers.

Joffe Book Prize winner named​

BookBrunch reports that T.L. Haseeb has won the 2025 Joffe Books Prize for unagented crime writers of colour with “The Portrait Maker,” praised as a fresh, tightly wound police procedural. Alongside the £ prize, the win comes with a publishing deal and potential representation, positioning Haseeb as a new name to watch in commercial crime.

Shefali Kharabanda wins £10k Times/Chicken House award​

The Bookseller covers Shefali Kharabanda’s win of the £10,000 Times/Chicken House Children’s Fiction Competition with “The Less‑Than‑Perfect Life of Jaya Kapoor,” about a girl navigating school, family, and identity. A companion Lime Pictures New Storyteller Award goes to Marianna Shek, with both winners securing publishing deals and agency interest after a nearly 1,000‑entry field.

British-Ukrainian author Marina Lewycka dies aged 79​

An obituary in The Bookseller notes the death of Marina Lewycka, best known for the comic novel “A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian,” at the age of 79. The piece reflects on her distinctive blend of humour and political awareness, and on how her novels brought Eastern European migrant stories to a wide mainstream readership.

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