CCBC-Net Archives
ccbc-net digest 8 Sep 2000
- Contemporary messages sorted: [ by date ] [ by subject ] [ by author ]
From: suelalexander at juno.com <suelalexander>
Date: Fri, 8 Sep 2000 07:30:18 -0700
My best guess, based on what I know of how things work, of why the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times did separate "Best Seller" lists for adult and children's books is a scenario that goes like this: publishers of adult books were screaming that Harry Potter had pushed their books aside -- and since the adult books advertised heavily in the paper, and children's books rarely did, the paper had better do something or they would pull their advertising. Ergo, a children's "Best Seller" list.
Be that as it may, I agree that the kind of column done by a professional in the field that reviews the books is of more help to parents and teachers than any "Best Seller" list could be. We had one in the Los Angeles Times, done first by Susan Patron and then Ilene Abramson -- both highly esteemed librarians from LAPL -- and then the paper pulled it.
Unfortunately, it's been my experience that writing to the newspaper is of little use. Myra Cohn Livingston and I wrote to the L.A. Times for years and it got us nowhere in terms of books reviews for children's books. Advertising is what carries the day for newspapers. If you could find a corporate sponsor who advertises in the paper to ask for/demand reviews of children's books appear in the paper, that might be a different story.
Sue Alexander Canoga Park CA 91307 Visit my new Web Site at:
http://www.sue-alexander.com
Received on Fri 08 Sep 2000 09:30:18 AM CDT
Date: Fri, 8 Sep 2000 07:30:18 -0700
My best guess, based on what I know of how things work, of why the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times did separate "Best Seller" lists for adult and children's books is a scenario that goes like this: publishers of adult books were screaming that Harry Potter had pushed their books aside -- and since the adult books advertised heavily in the paper, and children's books rarely did, the paper had better do something or they would pull their advertising. Ergo, a children's "Best Seller" list.
Be that as it may, I agree that the kind of column done by a professional in the field that reviews the books is of more help to parents and teachers than any "Best Seller" list could be. We had one in the Los Angeles Times, done first by Susan Patron and then Ilene Abramson -- both highly esteemed librarians from LAPL -- and then the paper pulled it.
Unfortunately, it's been my experience that writing to the newspaper is of little use. Myra Cohn Livingston and I wrote to the L.A. Times for years and it got us nowhere in terms of books reviews for children's books. Advertising is what carries the day for newspapers. If you could find a corporate sponsor who advertises in the paper to ask for/demand reviews of children's books appear in the paper, that might be a different story.
Sue Alexander Canoga Park CA 91307 Visit my new Web Site at:
http://www.sue-alexander.com
Received on Fri 08 Sep 2000 09:30:18 AM CDT
