The Bookseller.com

1st December 2008

Age-ranging gets the thumbs up

18.04.08 Graeme Neill

The vast majority of children's publishers have backed plans to introduce age guidance for children's books, and will implement the system from this autumn. The publishers, which include Hachette, Penguin, Random House, Scholastic and HarperCollins, will start age-ranging on black and white fiction, eventually rolling it out to all children's categories. A black and white design will be placed on the back of the books, near the bar code, with the categories of 5+, 7+, 9+, 11+ and 13+/teen.

The scheme is being introduced to reprints from April, and new fiction from autumn 2008. Guidance levels will be the responsibility of individual publishers, and will be an indication of reading level interest rather than ability.

The move marks the end of almost three years of debate and consultation led by the Publishers Association's Children's Book Group (CBG), all members of which are backing the initiative. Research conducted in autumn 2006 by Acacia Avenue revealed that 86% of book buyers would back the plans for guidance on books, with 40% saying that they would be more likely to buy more books if they featured guidance.

Elaine McQuade, m.d. of Scholastic Children's Books and chair of the CBG, said that despite initial scepticism about age guidance, she was won over by the research. "The research firmly showed us that potential book buyers were putting books down because they didn't know where they stood,‚" she said.

"If they were in an independent or specialist kids' shop, they may not need it, but that's not always the case. As far as independents are concerned, nothing is going to stop them recommending books. In other chains or supermarkets, there is not always someone on the floor who is a specialist who can help the shopper."

The CBG plans to hold further meetings about age-ranging with librarians and retailers, and will present its plans to the Society of Authors later this month. Discussions will also be held with publishers who are not part of the CBG, and have therefore not signed up to the initiative. "We need to go out there now and make it work,‚" McQuade said.

Other publishers involved include A & C Black, Egmont Press, Evan Publishing Group, Faber, Macmillan, Orion, OUP and Simon & Schuster. According to the Publishers Association, sales of children's books in 2007 increased by 17.4% in volume to 225m units sold, and by 34% in value to £404m, compared to 2006.

children's Graeme Neill Home Elaine McQuade age guidance

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