Issued Free to SABA Members – Not for Resale October 2007 - January 2008 Vol 12 Contents FEATURES REPORTS REGULARS 8 Effective Education 14 IFLA Congress Exceeds 4 From the Presidents A vision for the future Expectations Desk 10 Secrets to Success Awards put Libraries in 6 SABA National One on one with award willing book Executive Committee shops the Spotlight 24 Industry Update 12 SA’s Bookselling 16 Annual Focus on SABA Landscape The facts and figures What does SABA do for 27 Africa News you? 13 Sibongile Nzimande 28 International News KZN’z new GM for Public Libraries What’s Happening in your Sector? 32 Member Listing 18 WCED sets an Example The success of good working relationships The new Executive 35 2007 Buyers Guide Committee 20 The Next Big Seller The Golden Compass 22 26 Letters of the Alphabet Literacy against violence Bookmark REGULARS From the President’s Desk he Annual Meetings are over in a strict ethical framework. (See T and I would again like to thank pg 18 for an excerpt of this talk.) those of you who attended. The new School booksellers at the confer- format was very popular as it avoid- ence expressed concern about the ed a repetition of debate and enabled publishers moving into new areas of us to listen to a number of most in- direct supply and excluding book- teresting speakers. Judging from sellers from the Technical College the comments we have received, it is book market, for instance. SABA has likely that future meetings will follow decided to try to revive the LTSM the same format and I hope that we Committee which gave us the abil- will attract even more of our mem- ity to discuss book supply matters bership to the meetings that are to be at a high level within the Education held at the delightful Vineyard Hotel Department. in Cape Town in August next year. Library suppliers around the It was good this year to hear the country are beset with change. Some lively discussion on general book black suppliers said they find it promotion. The publishers are moving ahead confidently difficult to enter the market. In other areas large buyers are with the Get Caught Reading Campaign, which has been re- spreading their business much more widely, including small named ‘Whats your Story?’ and funding already committed black booksellers or traders. The association welcomes is being used to focus on the way forward. new booksellers but believes that librarians should support The project will run from the Cape Town Bookfair Offices bookshops. Many need the orders from libraries, to cover and Diane Makings will manage the campaign. The creative costs and offer a good range of books to the public, so the ideas of the VEGA advertising students and the market re- withdrawal of support undermines the genuine bookshops. search that has already been done are influencing the nature A good library system needs funding and we are disturbed to of the campaign and booksellers will need to play an impor- hear that South Africa’s richest area – Gauteng -is neglect- tant part as the campaign unfolds. This is a major project ing its libraries. (See pg 16 & 17 for a focus on Libraries.) and I encourage booksellers to give it their full support and Training new staff is important. The learnerships in KZN to help to grow our market. (See pg 22 for more on literacy were completed successfully and graduates celebrated at campaigns.) a dinner given by Lois Wagner. We need to continue this There was a presentation given by Willem Struik on the programme and hope that efforts to take the training to the Book Retail Industry Survey. His continuing research is giv- Cape and Gauteng areas are successful. ing fascinating insights. The size of the Christian book mar- Our meeting with the publishers focused on publishers’ con- ket which is almost a seventh of the General book market cerns over copyright infringement, which they believe is be- surprised some. The growth of local publishing and the mar- coming more widespread. They appealed to booksellers to ket for locally published titles pleased many. And the fact observe market rights by not importing the BookPower edi- that booksellers are responsible for only a small percentage tions, which are for sale only in designated poor countries of the total educational book market with the bulk of the or editions that are only for sale in restricted areas such as supply going through publishers who sell into distribution the Far East. They also requested booksellers to assist them centres disturbed us all. We are fortunate to have a person in reporting infringements. SABA supports the legal rights with Mr Struik’s experience pursuing retail research and of the publishers and trusts that they will ensure that illegal his information will become even more valuable as we see importation that comes to their notice is stopped. It causes trends developing. (See pg 12 for a condensed version of this difficulties for booksellers selling the legal editions if they presentation) are undercut by illegal imports. I therefore call on all our The talk by Jenny Rault -Smith drew listeners from both members to act correctly when importing. the bookselling and publishing areas. Her enthusiasm for Finally may I welcome to the National Executive the fol- reading and belief in the importance of books in education lowing new members. Caroline Nixon is the chairman of was refreshing. Booksellers from all over South Africa wish the Northern Region of SABA and Tshawe Vazi is chairman they had such champions in other education departments. of the Eastern Region. I trust they will join us in working She pointed out that the Department and the booksellers in to give to all our members a bookselling environment that the Western Cape each depend on each other and that the enables all to earn a good living. support of local booksellers is given because the booksellers are prepared to make extraordinary efforts to see that the Guru Redhi right books are supplied within strict time frames and with- Bookmark REGULARS BOOKMARK News Magazine of the South African Booksellers Association Editor: Jessica Hadley Grave 2 Grove Rd, Mowbray, 7700 SNationalABA Executive Committee Cape Town, South Africa Editorial and Advertising: Phone: +27 (0) 21 686 8286 President & Chairman, Central Region Email: [email protected] Guru Redhi (MG Redhi Booksellers) Subscriptions: Frikkie Nel Tel: +27 (0) 32 945 1240 Phone: +27 (0) 21 945 1572 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Design and Layout: The Font Factory Vice President & Chairman, Southern Region Printed by: Mills Litho Hentie Gericke (24/7 Books) Tel: +27 (0) 21 981 1270 Featured Writers: Jenny Rault Smith Email: [email protected] Willem Struik Jay Rangiah Secretary & Chairman, General Trade Peter Adams (Adams & Co) Reports: Tel: +27 (0) 31 304 8571 Nohra Moerat Email: [email protected] Dirk Uys Maureen Hargraves Peter Adams Honorary Treasurer & Chairman, Academic Dirk Uys (Van Schaik Bookshop) Photograhpy: Tel: +27 (0) 21 918 8400 Bookmark would like to thank everyone that sent us images Email: [email protected] Chairman, Libraries Maureen Hargraves (Hargraves Library Services) Views expressed in BOOKMARK are not necessarily those of SABA or the Editor. All contributions are published in the Tel: +27 (0) 21 447 5682 language in which they are submitted. Email: [email protected] Full copyright is retained by the respective contributors. Chairman, Education Joe Klaasen (Rynew Education) Tel: +27 (0) 21 951 6904 Email: [email protected] SABASABA OFFICEOFFICE Chairman, Northern Region Postal Address: SABA Caroline Nixon (CNA) P O Box 870 Tel: +27 (0) 11 491 7500 Bellville, 7535 Email: [email protected] Contact Numbers: Landline: (021) 945 1572 Cell: 083 441 9780 Chairman, Eastern Region Fax: (021) 945 2169 Clifford Vazi (Khulani Bookellers) Email: [email protected] Tel: +27 (0) 43 743 5129 Website: www.sabooksellers.com Email: [email protected] Office Hours: Monday to Thursday, 09h00 to 12h00 SABA National Manager Frikkie Nel The Executive Committee of SABA and the Editor thank all Tel: +27 (0) 21 945 1572 those who contributed to this issue of Bookmark through Email: [email protected] articles and/or advertising. Bookmark FEATURES Effective Education A vision for the future. By Jenny Rault-Smith Jenny Rault-Smith, Chief Director, GET educationist believed that: “The longest Africans 2007, which states that the South Curriculum and Assessment Development distance in the world is between an official African population cannot be described as for the Department of Education (DOE), ... curriculum policy and what goes on in a book reading nation, because of a lack of gives us a general overview of the the mind of a child.” Booksellers shorten books in their households. The segment education department’s vision for the that distance when they deliver valid and that is committed to books is relatively future and how SABA members can work appropriate books and textbooks to a small, i.e. one in seven people. with the department to ensure effective school. Furthermore, books are not popular education for South Africa’s youth. Textbooks are the key to empowering with leisure readers; most people read learners to take responsibility for their own newspapers and magazines. This poses a learning and for equipping them to extend challenge for us in education, because we their learning beyond the prescribed know that reading (books in particular) is 5 hours of contact time at school per the fundamental requirement for learning, day. Research has certainly shown that both initially and in life-long learning. time spent on teaching and learning Learners learn to read so that they can is equal to results, so more time spent read to learn but it is a shocking fact that on teaching and learning means better the majority of South African children results.