Tuesday, November 14, 2006

A mix of films and books...

From Publishers Lunch Weekly:

FICTION/DEBUT:

Camilla Way's debut novel of teen violence and angst in London in the 80s, THE DEAD OF SUMMER, to Adrienne Brodeur of Harcourt, by Eric Simonoff at Janklow & Nesbit (US).

MYSTERY/CRIME:

Linda Castillo's SWORN TO SILENCE, about a series of murders in Amish country and an Amish policewoman, to Charles Spicer at St. Martin's, at auction, for three books, for publication beginning in 2008, by Nancy Yost at Lowenstein-Yost (world).

GENERAL/OTHER:

Ildefonso Falcones' Spanish bestseller THE CATHEDRAL OF THE SEA, to Julie Doughty at Dutton, publication in for spring 2008, by Sandra Dijkstra at Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency (NA).

History professor at the European College of Liberal Arts in Berlin Dan Vyleta's PAVEL & I, about an American in post-war Berlin and his young German orphan friend -- and what happens after a dead Russian spy is left at his apartment, to Kathy Belden at Bloomsbury and Mike Jones at Bloomsbury UK, in a pre-empt, for publication in spring 2008, by Simon Lipskar at Writers House (world English).

Twenty-three-year old activist Rachel Corrie's collected letters and other writing, by an American, was killed by an Israeli Army bulldozer in March 2003 as she tried to block the bulldozing of a Palestinian home, compiled and annotated by her sister Sarah Corrie Simpson, and already the basis of a play adapted by actor Alan Rickman and Katharine Viner, to Jill Bialosky at Norton, by Bill Clegg of the William Morris Agency (NA).Lbrockett@wwnorton.com

UK:

Brent Ghelfi's VOLK'S GAME, introducing a Russian gangster with ties to both the Cold-War Russian military and the mafia, and the plot to steal a long-lost painting by a famous artist, to Walter Donohue at Faber & Faber, in a very nice deal, in a two-book deal, by David Grossman, on behalf of Denise Cronin at Holt.denise.cronin@hholt.com

FILM:

A.N. Wilson's novel A JEALOUS GHOST, to Paramount Vantage, for Kirsten Dunst to star in and produce, along with Film 360.

Sarah Dunant's novel about a courtesan and her companion dwarf in sixteenth century Renaissance Italy, optioned for feature film to producers Donna Gigliotti (Emma and Shakespeare in Love) and Barry Weissler (Chicago), by Lesley Thorne at Gillon Aitken Associates, on behalf of colleague Clare Alexander .

Daniel Handler's novel ADVERBS, about a daisy chain of gay and straight relationships, to GreeneStreet Films and producer Ross Katz (Marie Antoinette).

HISTORY/POLITICS/CURRENT AFFAIRS:

Stephan Talty's narrative THE EMPEROR AND THE MICROBE, a look at the epidemic that defeated Napoleon and his magnificent army, mixing conquest and megalomania with a medical detective story, to Rick Horgan at Crown, in a pre-empt, by Scott Waxman of the Waxman Literary Agency (NA).

NYT bestselling author of Kingdom Coming Michelle Goldberg's TYRANNY OF VIRTUE: FUNDAMENTALISM, WOMEN AND THE FUTURE OF THE WORLD, about the globalization of the culture wars, to Vanessa Mobley at Penguin Press, by Larry Weissman at Larry Weissman Literary.

NARRATIVE:

Joel Chasnoff's THE UNLUCKIEST DOG IN LEBANON, about the author's year serving in the Israeli army as "a wiseass American surrounded by teenagers with rifles," and a younger generation's shifting views on Israeli politics, to Maris Kreizman at Free Press, at auction, by Daniel Lazar at Writers House (NA).

Emily Yellin's YOUR CALL IS (NOT THAT) IMPORTANT TO US, an investigative narrative about the customer service industry, from outsourced IT helpdesks in India to Mormon housewives taking reservations for JetBlue to the corporate boardrooms where the policies that make customer service experiences so frustrating are made, to Liz Stein at Free Press, for publication in fall 2008, by Jennifer Gates at Zachary Shuster Harmsworth Literary Agency (NA).

SPORTS:

Former baseball star Steve Garvey's BAT BOY DAYS: LESSONS I LEARNED FROM THE BOYS OF SUMMER, anecdotal vignettes of the keys to life and baseball, which he learned from being a bat boy for the "last great generation of men who played baseball," including Jackie Robinson, Mickey Mantle, Pee Wee Reese and Sandy Koufax, to Brant Rumble at Scribner, by Scott Waxman of the Waxman Literary Agency (World).

TRUE CRIME:

NYT journalist Marek Fuchs's A COLD-BLOODED BUSINESS: THE MURDER OF DAVID HARMON AND THE RISE OF MARK MANGELSDORF, chronicling Mangelsdorf's rise from humble origins to Harvard MBA and high-flying corporate executive -- until a stunning break in a decades-old murder investigation, involving a horrific crime of passion at a Kansas Bible college, causes his life to unravel, to Brando Skyhorse at Skyhorse, by Albert LaFarge at the Albert LaFarge Literary Agency (US).

Wrap...

2 comments:

Indicted Plagiarist said...

A Verrrrryyyyyyyyy interesting reading list! Eclectic, wide ranging, explorative, perhaps. If I look through these any longer, I might find myself spending less time in the Internet and more time holding ... those objects open in my hands!

Watch 'n Wait said...

Hi Indicted P...Glad you found the list interesting. I surely did. But do keep in mind that none of these books are on bookstore shelves yet. They're in the process of being published, so best to keep a list of the ones you'd like to read until they're available. Could also pre-order from Amazon or whomever once publication time is close. Enjoy!