Tuesday, December 27, 2005

Cooking, Naked Politicians, Explorer...books....

From Publishers Weekly Lunch:

FICTION:

Chandra Prasad's ONE OF THE BOYS, set in the Depression, when Yale was an all boys school, Prasad's heroine dresses as a boy and takes the place of her brother in the freshman class when he is killed in an accident right before starting college, to Greer Hendricks at Atria, by Rosalie Siegel at International Literary Agent (world).rsiegel@ix.netcom.com

Former Paramount scout and husband to agent Maria Massie, Justin Evans's A GOOD AND HAPPY CHILD, a Southern Gothic suspense "in the spirit of Donna Tartt's The Secret History," to Sally Kim of Shaye Areheart Books, at auction, by Diane Bartoli at Artists Literary Group (world).

THRILLER:

Dan Simmons's THE TERROR, which recalls Melville and Conrad and packs the the jolt of Stephen King to tell an epic story inspired by a true historical event -- the confrontation between the crews of two ice-locked 19th century British expeditionary ships and a terrifying supernatural presence, to Michael Mezzo at Little, Brown, in a pre-empt, by Richard Curtis of Richard Curtis Associates.rcurtis@curtisagency.com
UK:

Lucy Diamond's ANY WAY YOU WANT ME, about a desperate housewife who creates a fictitious on-line identity to impress former school-mates and future employees until the stark reality of what she is doing begins to collide head-on with life in general, to Imogen Taylor at Macmillan, in a very nice deal, by Simon Trewin at PFD (UK/Commonwealth). strewin@pfd.co.uk

Diane Setterfield's debut THE THIRTEENTH TALE, about a reclusive novelist, to Jane Wood at Orion, in a major deal, reportedly for about $1.4 million, for two books, for publication beginning in September 2006, by Vivien Green at Sheil Land Associates. A US auction is coming soon.

NON FICTION/GENERAL/OTHER:

Author and senior writer at Time Jeffrey Kluger's SIMPLEXITY: The Complex Guppy, The Simple Star, and Why Kicking Your Television Works, an exploration of the complicated nature of simple things, the simple nature of complicated things, and how they can both be used to improve our lives in fields as diverse as biology, economics, politics, child development, and the arts, to Kelly Notaras at Hyperion, in a pre-empt, for publication in fall 2007, by Joy Harris at the Joy Harris Agency (world English).Katie.Wainwright@abc.com

NYT bestseller Steven Johnson's untitled book on where good ideas come from and why certain environments which are often chaotic, noisy, urban, and connective foster creative thinking while others environments suppress them, drawing on brain science, urban history, sociology and personal anecdotes from creative people, again to Sean McDonald at Riverhead, by Lydia Wills at Paradigm (world).lwills@paradigmny.com

BIOGRAPHY:

Walter R. Borneman's DARK HORSE, BRIGHT LAND: James K. Polk and the Conquest of the American West, the story of how Polk unabashedly proclaimed a policy of continental expansion, welcomed Texas into the Union, bluffed the British out of the better half of Oregon, and went to war with Mexico to grab California and the Southwest, to Will Murphy at Random House, by Alexander Hoyt at Alexander Hoyt Associates (world).Rights: ctisne@randomhouse.com

COOKING:

Kelly Alexander and Cindy Harris's HOMETOWN APPETITES: The Life, Legacy, and Recipes of Clementine Paddleford, part biography, part cookbook, based on a James Beard Award-winning Saveur feature story about pioneer food writer Clementine Paddleford, who defined American cuisine by writing about what ordinary Americans were cooking at a time when most food writers were looking to European traditions, to Erin Moore at Gotham, in a pre-empt, by Michael Psaltis at Regal Literary (world).

HISTORY/POLITICS/CURRENT AFFAIRS:

Eamonn Fingleton's IN THE JAWS OF THE DRAGON: America's Fate in the Coming Era of Chinese Hegemony, to Thomas Dunne at Thomas Dunne Books, by Fredrica Friedman at Fredrica S. Friedman and Company (world rights, excl. Japan).fsf10@yahoo.com

Kristen Laine's AMERICAN BAND, tracing the importance of the "band" subculture in American high schools and examine larger issues, such as the texture of life and growing influence of faith in Red State America, to William Shinker at Gotham, with Erin Moore editing, at auction, by
Robert Shepard of the Robert E. Shepard Agency (NA).robert@shepardagency.com

Pulitzer Prize-winning author of GOTHAM Edwin Burrow's PRISONERS OF NEW YORK, the history of the largely unknown prison camps in New York City where tens of thousands of Americans were imprisoned and brutally treated during the American Revolution - ultimately leading to more American deaths than all of the battles of the Revolution combined, to Lara Heimert at Basic, in a pre-empt, by Sam Stoloff at Frances Goldin Literary Agency (NA).jamie.brickhousse@perseusbooks.com

HUMOR:

Air America co-creator Shelley Lewis's NAKED POLITICIANS: A Revealing Guide to the Right-Wingers Who Want Your Vote, a humorous collection of gotchas that expose Republican hypocrisy from Tom "The Natural" Delay's corruption trial, to Bill "Disgrace Under Pressure" Frist's insider trading scandal, with a political Hall of Shame for lifetime achievers, including a special "League of Their Own" section for the Republican ladies, to Julia Cheiffetz at Villard, to be published to coincide with midterm elections in the fall, by Laurie Liss at Sterling Lord Literistic (NA).Rights: rbernstein@randomhouse.com

MEMOIR:

Club, TV and radio comedienne (and wife of Andy Richter) Sarah Thyre's DARK AT THE ROOTS, at humorous, quirky memoir about growing up in southeastern Louisiana, to Amy Scheibe at Counterpoint, for six figures, in a pre-empt, her first acquisition since joining the house, for publication in spring 2007, by Erin Hosier of The Gernert Company (world). Film rights are with Rabineau, Wachter & Sanford.Jamie.brickhouse@perseusbooks.com

NARRATIVE:

Adventurer Mike Horn's CONQUERING THE IMPOSSIBLE, an account of his record-breaking 12,000-mile, 27-month solo expedition around the globe at the Arctic Circle without motorized transportation and his ability to overcome severe frostbite, a fire that nearly burned him alive, and other near-fatal mishaps, to Tom Mercer at St. Martin's, by Susanna Lea at Susanna Lea Associates, on behalf of XO Editions (NA).

UK:

Jim Steinmeyer's THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO CHARLES FORT: Raining Fish, Talking Dogs, Dripping Blood, and the Writer who Unhinged the Cosmos, to Heinemann, by Arabella Stein at Abner Stein on behalf of Anne Garrett at James Fitzgerald Agency (UK/Com). anne@jfitzagency.com

Wrap...

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