The Publishers Association

When you’re planning to watch a book adaptation, do you make sure you’ve read it first? 📺 📖 Our Books on Screen report shows this valuable relationship has multiple benefits both ways. The screen industry often chooses to bet on great storytelling, loved characters and perhaps even a built in fanbase: five of the top 10 most-viewed, first-run, TV dramas for 2024 were adapted from books. Meanwhile, less-confident readers might pick up a book where they already have some context from the screen. “For example, you know how to pronounce the names you're reading and the terminology of the universe. For somebody who doesn't have great reading skills, there is a huge confidence boost by understanding this context first. We see the impact of this all the time in the work we do.” says Jason Vit, Assistant Director of Place-Based Working at National Literacy Trust. Below, our team have chosen some of their favourite book to screen adaptations. Discover the multiple both-way benefits of the books to screen story in our report: https://lnkd.in/eJdTM3MZ and add to our reading AND watching lists in the comments...whichever way round you're choosing to discover a story! 👇 #GoAllIn #NationalYearofReading

"Research conclusively shows that reading for pleasure fires the imagination, builds empathy, and is the single greatest predictor of academic success, life outcomes and wellbeing - regardless of social background. Books are also a major economic force: driving exports and inspiring global film franchises, TV series and plays." Watch Baroness Gail Rebuck's brilliant intervention in the House of Lords, covering the benefits of reading for pleasure and how the National Year of Reading is bringing people together across the community to reverse reading's decline.

How do we make reading synonymous with joy, something fun, something which speaks to our experiences and interests, something we want to share with others? Those questions were at the heart of the penultimate session of the Education Select Committee’s inquiry into reading for pleasure. Publishers Association President Rebecca Sinclair gave evidence alongside Frank Cottrell-Boyce, screenwriter, novelist, and children's author and Waterstones Children’s Laureate 2024- 2026, Meryl Halls, Managing Director, The Booksellers Association and Joelle Owusu-Sekyere, Editorial Director, Merky Books. Watch Rebecca below giving evidence on the work publishers are doing to expand access, and read more on issues covered today on our website: ➡️ https://lnkd.in/e48__3Bi Watch the full session back ➡️ https://lnkd.in/eEN3H2NQ Penguin Random House UK

Last week at our AGM, our new President, Rebecca Sinclair, shared her reading journey and what books have meant to her – as a child, as she navigated moving to London and started her career, and the solace she has found in stories and ideas at difficult times. And, as the Publishers Association turns 130 years old this year, she reflected how publishing remains as relevant to society, culture, research and commerce as ever. You can read her full speech on our website: https://lnkd.in/evMaYrb7

Tonight, The British Book Awards will celebrate some the year's most impactful books and the people who have been part of the process of getting them to the readers who will love them. Good luck to all our nominated members! To celebrate, a timely reminder from our #PeopleOfPublishing on 3 words (or more!) they would use to describe working in the industry... Find out more about #PeopleofPublishing: https://lnkd.in/e2-WU4FG

Today at the British Library Rebecca Sinclair, Chief Brand Officer at Penguin Random House UK, took over the role of President of the Publishers Association, succeeding Mandy Hill, Managing Director of Academic at Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Rebecca said: "The Publishers Association’s role is to create the conditions in which writers, creators, researchers and publishers can flourish. Those conditions, including copyright protection and freedom of expression, are increasingly under pressure and it is imperative that we continue to protect them. At the same time, the National Year of Reading presents a powerful opportunity to champion books and reading, and to recraft the narrative so it is a genuinely open, inclusive and accessible invitation for all. The work starts now, but the legacy must be long-lasting. “Collective action on both counts is more important than ever, and the Publishers Association creates the space and forum to do that. Publishing has always been an adaptable and resilient industry, and I am optimistic that we will create the foundations for a future pipeline of readers. “I look forward to representing the industry, across all sectors, over the coming year and to championing the value of publishing to the creative industries, the UK economy and wider society." The new Officer team and new council members were confirmed at the Publishers Association’s AGM, held today (Wednesday 6 May) at the British Library, including Steven Inchcoombe, President of Research at Springer Nature, who takes up the position as Vice-President and Treasurer of the Publishers Association. (Photo one: Rebecca Sinclair, Photo two: Dan Conway, Rebecca Sinclair, Catriona MacLeod Stevenson, Steven Inchcoombe.) Read Rebecca’s inaugural speech in full: https://lnkd.in/evMaYrb7

Last but certainly not least - Sarah Marsh from Cambridge University Press & Assessment is the final person to meet in this cohort of our People of Publishing as she tells us about the impact of academic publishing. Sarah’s outstanding commissioning in clinical psychology focuses on enhancing mental health and wellbeing through innovative publishing. Her publications support research and clinical practice and have expanded the reach of Cambridge books to general readers and younger audiences. One of Sarah’s career highlights was having a book she commissioned from a Clinical Psychologist to help children and families understand the challenges of living with Type 1 diabetes, read by James Norton on CBeebies Bedtime Stories. Discover more about People of Publishing and watch our full film: https://hubs.li/Q04f5Y5S0

A reminder that this is the week to dive into metadata and find out how to get your books “retail-ready” the moment they enter the system. Details to sign up to our webinar on Thursday below ⬇️

On Tuesday night, we gathered to celebrate the power of non-fiction writing at the Unwin Award and Lecture. We heard a powerful speech from last year’s winner and this year’s lecturer, Caroline Criado Perez, on how a linguistics book read as part of her English degree transformed her worldview and set her on the path to writing Invisible Women. We celebrated our shortlist and their skill at opening-up complex topics to wide audiences and imparting information with real impact on policy and public opinion. And in her acceptance speech this year's winner, Hannah Ritchie, told us about the data that shows progress made in areas such as the ozone layer and childhood mortality, making a case for optimism in difficult times. Congratulations again to all our shortlisted authors and our winner, Hannah Ritchie! Read more about Hannah and the award: https://lnkd.in/e8tbpkr5

Tonight, The Unwin Award, run by the Publishers Association, has announced Hannah Ritchie – bestselling author, researcher and editor – as the winner of the prize. Hannah is the author of two works of non-fiction: Not The End of the World (2024) and Clearing the Air (2025). The Unwin Award Judging Panel 2026 praised Not the End of the World as a well-written and revealing book and for its optimistic and data-grounded approach which gives readers hope for the future of the planet. The panel recognised Hannah’s masterful handling of this ambitious subject matter and praised how she drilled into it using data and science. They believe this book will continue to have a huge impact on readers long after publication, along with her second non-fiction book, Clearing The Air, which is also about climate change. Hannah has kindly decided to donate the prize money to The Against Malaria Foundation. Read more: ➡️https://lnkd.in/efJk4yRM