Bob Asahina, a veteran Simon &Schuster editor who has been involved most recently with Golden Books' adult publishing operation, has been named the new editor-in-chief of Broadway Books, replacing John Sterling, who is now president of Henry Holt.
Broadway president and publisher Bill Shinker said Asahina, who will also be a senior v-p, will oversee the editorial department as well as acquire and edit both fiction and nonfiction books for the list. Shinker described him as "an executive whose editorial taste and intellect are matched by his managerial aptitude."
Asahina, who began as a journalist, worked at S&S for 15 years as a v-p and senior editor, where his bestselling successes included William Bennett's The Book of Virtues, Stephen R. Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Alan Bloom's The Closing of the American Mind and Susan Powter's Stop the Insanity. He was also the editor of Bret Easton Ellis's first novel, Less Than Zero.
In 1996 he followed former S&S chairman Richard Snyder to Golden Books, where he was president and publisher of the adult publishing group of Golden Books Family Entertainment, doing mostly family-oriented parenting and health titles.
Golden Near Sale
With the departure of Asahina as president of Golden's adult group, Golden spokesperson Philip Galanes has confirmed that the company is in "final negotiations" to sell the unit. The adult group, which is now being run by Laura Yorke, has a total of about 129 front and backlist titles. St. Martin's Press, which distributes Golden's adult books, is considered the most likely candidate to acquire the unit.
