North-South Books, which had a large staff reduction last spring (News, Apr. 8, 2002), has trimmed its work force again, eliminating four of 15 jobs in its U.S. operation. Company spokesperson Shellie Parkhill said the economic downturn in both the U.S. and Switzerland, where North-South's parent company is based, forced the new round of cutbacks. "We hope the layoffs will improve our economies of scale," Parkhill said. The children's book publisher will release 45 titles this spring, but is still working out the details of its fall line.