Future reading...Books a batch....

From Publishers Lunch Weekly:

FICTION/DEBUT:

Associate director of The New School's MFA program Jackson Taylor's THE BLUE ORCHARD, based on the true story of a white nurse and a black doctor who were arrested for performing "illegal surgeries" in 1955 Harrisburg, Pa., to Sulay Hernandez at Touchstone Fireside, for publication in Fall 2009, by Ryan Fischer-Harbage at the Fischer-Harbage Agency (NA).

GENERAL/OTHER:

Author of literary historical suspense novels Amagansett and The Savage Garden Mark Mills' THE INFORMATION OFFICER, to Jennifer Hershey at Random House, in a two-book deal, by Stephanie Cabot as The Gernert Company (NA).

Helen Humphreys's THE FROZEN THAMES, chronicling the 40 times that this fabled river completely froze from the years 1142 to 1895, to Caitlin Alexander at Bantam Dell, in nice deal, at auction, by Bill Hanna of Acacia House.

Colin McAdam's FALL, the story of a late-blooming bully and his American roommate, whose girlfriend goes missing during their final year of school, to Sarah McGrath at Riverhead, by Douglas Stewart at Sterling Lord Literistic (US).Canadian rights to Nicole Winstanley at Penguin Canada.

Biting the Wax Tadpole: Confessions of A Language Fanatic author Elizabeth Little's TRIP OF THE TONGUE: A Cross-Country Quest for American Language, sussing out firsthand the fascinating history of language in our country, to Colin Dickerman at Bloomsbury, in a pre-empt, by Kate Garrick of DeFiore and Company (World English).

UK FICTION:

Commonwealth Prize for overall Best Book winner Lawrence Hill's THE BOOK OF NEGROES, a fictional slave narrative, to Marianne Velmans at Doubleday UK, by Claire Roberts at Trident Media Group, on behalf of Ellen Levine.

CANADA FICTION:

NYT bestselling author Terry Goodkind's A DIFFERENT KIND OF HUMAN and THE HINGES OF HELL, to Maya Mavjee and Kristin Cochrane at Doubleday Canada, for publication in 2009 and 2010, by Danny Baror at Baror International, on behalf of Russell Galen at Scovil Chichak Galen Literary Agency.

BUSINESS/INVESTING/FINANCE:

Journalism professor at New York University and Fast Company contributing writer Adam Penenberg's VIRAL LOOP: BUILDING A BILLION-DOLLAR BUSINESS FROM SCRATCH, explaining this paradigm-busting phenomenon, which is the essence of how the most successful Web 2.0 companies are growing, as each new user begets more users (just by using a product they spread it), and telling the colorful story of its main players, with viral loop, to Will Balliett at Hyperion, by Kate Lee at ICM, for publication in Fall 2009 (World English).

HISTORY/POLITICS/CURRENT AFFAIRS:

Journalist and author (Wild Ride, Ransom, Beyond the River, Savage Peace) Ann Hagedorn's investigative book about private military contractors (PMCs), focusing on one highly influential company and how the PMCs have become a vital part of the US defense establishment even as they have grown globally and owe loyalty to no one, to Bob Bender at Simon & Schuster, by Alice Martell of Alice Martell Agency (world).

NYT bestselling author Steven Johnson's THE INVENTION OF AIR, about British scientist Joseph Priestley who discovered not only the existence of oxygen, but how it interacts with the ecosystem, and after moving to America, went on to influence his two great comrades, Jefferson and Franklin, and their defining values of the integration of science and politics, to Sean McDonald at Riverhead, by Lydia Wills at Paradigm (World).

Journalists John Heilemann and Mark Halperin's account of the presidential election of 2008, aiming for a "sweeping, novelistic" portrait of this historic and unusual race, to Tim Duggan at Harper, for publication in the fall of 2009, by Andrew Wylie at The Wylie Agency.

MEMOIR:

Christopher Ciccone's LIFE WITH MY SISTER MADONNA, based on his life and forty-seven years of growing up with and working with his sister - the most famous woman in the world, written with Wendy Leigh, to Jennifer Bergstrom at Simon Spotlight Entertainment, for publication on July 15, 2008, by Fredrica Friedman of Fredrica S. Friedman and Company.

Wrap...