Amazon cuts jobs across Kindle and Goodreads in bid to streamline Books division

Amazon has laid off a small number of employees across its Books business, including teams at its Kindle and Goodreads units, the company confirmed on Thursday. Fewer than 100 roles have been impacted by the restructuring, which the tech giant says is aimed at enhancing operational efficiency and aligning with its strategic goals.

“As part of our ongoing work to make our teams and programs operate more efficiently, and to better align with our business roadmap, we’ve made the difficult decision to eliminate a small number of roles within the Books organisation,” an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement.

The latest cuts form part of a broader recalibration under CEO Andy Jassy, who has been spearheading efforts to reduce corporate layers and improve speed of execution across Amazon’s sprawling operations. Over the past year, the company has made targeted job reductions in several verticals including its Devices and Services division, the Wondery podcast arm, and corporate communications.

While Amazon added approximately 4,000 roles in the first quarter of 2025, according to its most recent earnings disclosure, that hiring momentum contrasts with its parallel attempts to curb bureaucratic sprawl and maintain leaner teams.

The job cuts were initially reported by Business Insider. On Thursday, Amazon shares closed 0.3% higher, though the stock is still down 5.6% year to date.