Mary-Alice Moore Named Publisher of innovative Kids

Mary-Alice Moore has been appointed publisher of innovative Kids, the fast-growing children's book publisher based in Norwalk, Conn. Moore succeeds Shari Kaufman, who has taken over as president from Michael Levins, who has become CEO. Moore will report to both Kaufman and Levins, the cofounders of innovative Kids. Moore will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company, allowing Kaufman to concentrate on the development and acquisition of new projects, formats, programs and series. Prior to joining innovative, Moore had been v-p and editor-in-chief of Night Sky Books, an imprint she founded at North-South Books.

Innovative launched its first list in 1999 and has had double-digit growth in each of its three years of operation. Moore said her apppointment is part of the company's effort to move from a startup to a publisher that can support sustainable long-term growth. Moore's initial focus will be to better define and shape innovative Kids' niche. The company has earned a reputation for publishing educational and entertaining interactive books. It has had great success with its Soft Shapes and Code Master series, and its newest series, Now I'm Reading, sold 275,000 copies in its first year. "My job is to determine just what makes an innovative Kids book," Moore said.