Valentine's Nominations Needed

This Friday, December 9, is the deadline for the Book Sense 2006 Valentine's Day Top Ten. This annual list is compiled by Book Sense in conjunction with the Association of American Publishers' (AAP) Get Caught Reading initiative, and it is part of a series of seasonal Top Ten lists that Book Sense and AAP produce each year based on the nominations of independent booksellers nationwide.

Solid participation is needed to create a strong and intriguing list, and Book Sense Picks Editor-in-Chief Dan Cullen strongly encourages booksellers to send in nominations for frontlist and backlist titles -- either adult or children's titles -- that would make good Valentine's Day selections. Nominations may be sent by e-mail to picks@booksense.com or via the convenient online nomination form at www.bookweb.org/read/6305.

Valentine's Day offers a significant sales opportunity for retailers, and the Valentine's Day Top Ten is a offered as a timely marketing tool for booksellers. In 2005, the National Retail Federation projected that 61.8 percent of U.S. consumers plan to celebrate Valentine's Day, spending an estimated $13.19 billion.

Last year's list was engaging and wide-ranging -- from Cecelia Ahern's Rosie Dunne to The Scarlet Pimpernel.

"Please do send in your nominations to help ensure that this list is just as strong," says Cullen.