Fremantle Press audio books licensed to the Association for the Blind of WA

The Association for the Blind of WA will make its first commercial foray into audio book publication using Fremantle Press books.

Starting with The Last Whale the Association currently has nine Fremantle Press titles in production and plans to release even more throughout Australia and New Zealand before the end of the year.

CEO of Fremantle Press Jenny Archibald said she was looking forward to a successful partnership.

“We have licensed many of our titles for audio editions before but what makes this venture particularly exciting is the fact the money from these editions will go back into helping people who are vision impaired,” she said.

The Association will promote the audio books on its website and will sell them from its Association shop starting in May 2009. The Association hopes to win support for the audio editions from public libraries in Australia and New Zealand.

“This is a whole new venture and we are genuinely excited to be starting it with Fremantle Press as a local publisher of high repute,” said the Association’s Director of Training, Employment and Information Services Carol Solosy.

She said each year the Braille and Talking Book Library helps more than 2,000 people with vision impairment enjoy the pleasure of a good book.

“The sale of our audio editions has the potential to help so many people,” said Ms Solosy.

The other eight titles licensed are; The Last Sky by Alice Nelson, Harum Scarum and An Easeful Death by Felicity Young, Sweet by Tracy Ryan, Father of the House: The Memoirs of Kim E. Beazley, Southern Edge by Barbara Temperton, The Bookshop on Jacaranda Street by Marlish Glorie and Jack’s Island by Norman Jorgensen.

The first audio edition will be available at www.guidedogswa.com.au from May 2009.

In other licensing news, Crow and the Waterhole by Ambelin Kwaymullina was sold to Marubol Publications in South Korea this week.