Short Takes

Dr. Sandeep Jauhar writes on medical matters for the New York Times, so his book called The Education of a Doctor, about his medical school experiences and his later ones as a senior hospital cardiologist drew considerable publisher interest. It was FSG's John Glusman who bought it, with a six-figure pre-empt, North American rights, from agent Todd Shuster.... Peter McGuigan at Sanford Greenburger knew that bestselling author Dan Brown would be a tough sell in Italy, writing as an American about both the country and a national hero (in Angels and Demons and Da Vinci Code). In the end it took five months (the longest auction ever?), but eventually Mondadori prevailed, with an advance just shy of half a million for both books.... Faye Bender at Anderson Grinberg sold a new novel, a family drama, by NBA-nominated Beth Henley (Hummingbird House) to Pantheon's LuAnn Walther. It's called Tango Season and was a North American rights deal, with Jenny Meyer handling foreign.... Celebrated historian of Christianity and Yale professor emeritus Jaroslav Pelikan signed with Viking Penguin's Carolyn Carlson for a book called The Bible Through the Ages, which will examine how the book, in its many translations, has influenced many religions and cultures. It's Pelikan's first deal with a trade house and was a world rights one, negotiated for him by agent Michael Carlisle.... A first novel called The Donor by memoirist Brendan Halpin made a six-figure North American sale to Villard's Bruce Tracy; it's the story of a girl's relationship with her sperm donor father, and the sale was made by Douglas Stewart at Curtis Brown, which will be selling foreign rights in Frankfurt.