Book industry representatives from 14 countries announced today the formation of a new, global standard to categorize and classify book content by subject. The project, initially known as “Thema,” was first announced during the Tools of Change Supply Chain Conference taking place during the Frankfurt International Book Fair.

Canadians still overwhelmingly prefer print books to e-books, says BookNet Canada’s new The Canadian Book Consumer 2012: Book-Buying Behaviour in Canada January to June 2012 report. The first edition of the report—available today—finds that 86% of Canadians still purchase print formats and 19% buy electronic formats.

In the second quarter of 2012, the overall market is marginally down in volume but up in value when compared to 2011. Fiction experienced a boost this spring posting a positive percentage change. Juvenile continued to grow showing increases over last year, with value sold doing especially well. But non-fiction sales were not affected by the bump; they continued to decline in volume and value.

BookNet Canada is pleased to launch a new benefit program in partnership with NetGalley, the innovative and easy-to-use online service and connection point for book publishers and professional readers. The partnership includes a NetGalley member benefit discount for CataList subscribers who also subscribe to NetGalley, as well as integration between the NetGalley and CataList applications.

In the first quarter of 2012, the overall market is down in both volume and value compared to 2011. Both fiction and non-fiction continue to experience decreases. The dip in fiction is steady but, this quarter, non-fiction experienced a bigger decline than in the previous quarter. However, juvenile books continue to grow.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, both volume and value were down again overall compared to 2010. However, total market numbers were not down as much as the previous quarter and a lift in juvenile books meant the overall decrease was not evenly spread across categories. The fiction category was down again in both volume and value, while non-fiction was also down but less than in the previous quarter.

In the third quarter of 2011, both volume and value were down again overall compared to 2010. All three categories were down in both volume and value. All figures for this report have been drawn from BookNet Canada’s national book sales tracking system, BNC SalesData, using the year-over-year sales from a fixed panel of 665 retail locations from across the country.

According to BNC SalesData, sales for the 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize winning book, Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan, have surged 479% since the winner announcement. Edugyan’s book sales have been boosted by several award nominations this fall but the Giller win has had the most significant impact.

According to BNC SalesData, the 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize finalists have seen an average volume increase of 160% in the two weeks since the shortlist was announced, compared to their performance before the longlist nominations.

In the second quarter of 2011, both volume and value were down again overall compared to 2010. All three categories were down in both volume and value. All figures for this report have been drawn from BookNet Canada’s national book sales tracking system, BNC SalesData, using the year-over-year sales from a fixed panel of 665 retail locations from across the country.

In the first quarter of 2011, both volume and value were down again overall compared to 2010. All three categories were down in both volume and value. All figures for this report have been drawn from BookNet Canada’s national book sales tracking system, BNC SalesData, using the year-over-year sales from a fixed panel of 665 retail locations from across the country.

In the fourth quarter of 2010, both volume and value were down again overall compared to 2009. Fiction and juvenile were down in both volume and value. But non-fiction was up slightly in both units and dollars.

For the fourth quarter of 2009, volume was down while value saw a slight increase over 2008. Fiction was up in both value and volume, continuing the trend of Q3. Non-fiction was down in volume but relatively flat in value compared to Q4 of 2009. Juvenile was down in both units and dollars.

All the pent-up demand for 2010 Scotiabank Giller Prize winner has translated into brisk business for booksellers this week. With the release of the trade paperback edition from Douglas & McIntyre, the title has seen a huge sales spike. This week, The Sentimentalists is the #1 bestselling fiction title in Canada, beating out heavy hitters, including Stieg Larsson and Dan Brown.

According to BookNet Canada’s BNC SalesData, the 2010 Scotiabank Giller Prize finalists saw a lift in sales of 191% in the week of the shortlist announcement compared to the previous week. The winner of this year’s Scotiabank Giller Prize will be announced on November 9th. If the past few years are any indication, this year’s winner stands to dominate the Canadian bestseller lists.

In the third quarter of 2010, both volume and value were down again overall compared to 2009. Fiction and non-fiction were down in both volume and value. Juvenile was also down in both units and dollars, but much less than in the previous quarter.

In the second quarter of 2010, both volume and value were down again overall compared to 2009. Fiction was up in value but volume dipped very slightly, whereas non-fiction was down in both. Juvenile was down the most in both units and dollars, but less than in the previous quarter.

For the first quarter of 2010, both volume and value were down overall compared to 2009. Fiction was up in both value and volume, where as non-fiction was down in both. Juvenile was down the most in both units and dollars.