Some excellent agents representing excellent books...

From Publishers Lunch Weekly:

FICTION/DEBUT:

Julia Stuart's THE MATCHMAKER OF PERIGORD, in which a barber turned matchmaker sets out to bring love to a village of eccentrics, to Alison Callahan at Harper, in a nice deal, by Grainne Fox at Ed Victor Ltd. (NA).UK rights to Transworld, for publication in 2007. Rights sold previously to Random House in Spain, De Kern in Holland, and Goldmann in

Germany.Journalist Tatiana Boncompagni's first novel, GILDING LILY, a humorous roman a clef set amid Manhattan's high society play dates, loaner gowns and jewels, and socialite PR specialists, drawing on the author's own experience reporting on the socialite scene for the NYT and life as daughter to an Italian Princess and wife to Max Hoover, heir to the vacuum cleaning fortune, to Lucia Macro at William Morrow, in a pre-empt, by Diane Bartoli at Artists Literary Group (NA).

GENERAL/OTHER:

From the author of VISIGOTH, Gary Amdahl's THE INTIMIDATOR STILL LIVES IN OUR HEARTS, a collection of short fiction in which a mob boss hires a ghost writer to pen his autobiography, a bookseller finds himself in Nascar country, and the vagaries of office politics are considered, to Ben Barnhart at Milkweed, by Elise Proulx at Frederick Hill Bonnie Nadell Agency (world English).elise_hillnadell@sbcglobal.net

Jim Knipfel's NOOGIE'S TIME TO SHINE, in which an ATM thief pulls off a great caper and hits the road with his Siamese cat and 350 pounds of $20 bills, to Ken Siman at Virgin, in a nice deal, by Melanie Jackson Agency (NA).

UK CHILDREN'S:

Susan Hill's THE BATTLE FOR GULLYWITH, based on chapters posted for comment on her blog, to Sarah Odedina at Bloomsbury Children's, for publication in 2008 by Vivien Green at Sheil Land Associates (UK).

UK:

28-year-old screenwriter Tom Rob Smith's debut novel CHILD 44, pitched as in the tradition of Robert Harris and Martin Cruz Smith, set in the Soviet Union on the eve of Stalin's death, and based in part on real events, to Suzanne Baboneau at Simon & Schuster UK, at auction, for publication in spring 2008, by James Gill at PFD. US rights are with Jim Rutman at Sterling Lord.Rutman@sll.comTranslation: jcraig@pfd.co.uk

FILM//TV:

Film rights to Lauren St. John's debut children's novel THE WHITE GIRAFFE, to Walden Media, by Rebecca Watson at Valerie Hoskins Associates, on behalf of Catherine Clarke at the Felicity Bryan Agency.cc@felicitybryan.comRebecca@vhassociates.co.uk

NON-FICTION
ADVICE/RELATIONSHIPS:

Cindy Lu's THE FOUR MAN PLAN, which began as a one-woman show, about the author's struggles to find love and the dating plan, using mathematical equations and graphs, she invented along the way to happily ever after, to Ann Campbell at Broadway, at auction, by Kirsten Neuhaus and David Vigliano at Vigliano Associates (NA). kn@viglianoassociates.com

BIOGRAPHY:

Timothy Leary and Bill Graham Presents author Robert Greenfield's AHMET ERTEGUN AND THE RAISE AND FALL OF ROCK 'N' ROLL, a biography of the Atlantic Records founder who recorded Ruth Brown, Big Joe Turner, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Bobby Darin, Sonny and Cher, the Coasters, Crosby Still Nash & Young, the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Yes, the Bee Gees, Bette Midler, Bonnie Raitt, Phil Collins, Tori Amos, Kid Rock, and dozens more of the biggest names in popular music, to Bob Bender at Simon & Schuster, by Paul Bresnick at Paul Bresnick Agency (world English).

HISTORY/POLITICS/CURRENT AFFAIRS:

James Hornfischer's NEPTUNE'S INFERNO, a character-focused narrative portrait of our Navy's bloodiest and most pivotal campaign of World War II, the epic three-month struggle in late 1942 to win the vital seaways off Guadalcanal, America's first offensive of the Pacific war, to Tracy Devine at Bantam Dell, by Frank Weimann at The Literary Group (world).

Pulitzer-winning historian Taylor Branch's WRESTLING HISTORY: The Bill Clinton Tapes, drawing on 2,600 pages of notes from nearly 80 interview sessions while Clinton was president, though Clinton kept the actual tapes ("I'm not calling this a biography of Clinton or a history of the administration. It is what it was like to live through it that way, sitting alone with him, talking about the presidency as he saw it, right in the moment."), called "a log of fresh experience, anguish, and reflection" by the publisher, to Alice Mayhew at Simon & Schuster, for publication in late 2008, by Liz Darhansoff of Darhansoff, Verrill & Feldman.

HUMOR:

NYT bestselling author of 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Daughter Bruce Cameron's 8 SIMPLE RULES FOR MARRYING MY DAUGHTER, tracking another transition, from grown daughter to bride-to-be, and explains to fathers (and mothers) mysteries like why the wedding has to be in colors you've never heard of and why the wedding cake costs as much as a compact car, to Trish Todd at Touchstone Fireside, by Scott Miller at Trident Media Group (NA).

MEMOIR:

Craig Mullaney's THE UNFORGIVING MINUTE, about a West Point grad/former Rhodes Scholar/Army captain who fought in Afghanistan, reflecting on his own struggle to study, practice, and teach war, analyzing the education of a warrior and the true definition of courage, to Jane Fleming at Penguin Press, by E.J. McCarthy at EJ McCarthy Agency (World).

Jon Provost and Laurie Jacobson's TIMMY'S IN THE WELL, the author's Hollywood career, including 7 years as Timmy on "Lassie," and its effect on his family, to Ron Pitkin at Cumberland House, in a nice deal, by Anne McDermott at Anne McDermott Management. livinglegendsltd@juno.com

GENERAL/OTHER:

Czech philosopher and Catholic priest Tomas Halik's CONFESSOR'S NIGHT, a first book in English translation, offering philosophical observations on what it is like to view the events of the daily news through the eyes of a confessor, to Bill Barry and Trace Murphy in Doubleday, in a very nice deal, in a two-book deal, by Marly Rusoff at Marly Rusoff & Associates (world English).

Wrap...