The PW Morning Report, November 19, 2008

By Dermot McEvoy -- Publishers Weekly, 11/19/2008 5:58:00 AM

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

A daily round-up of the latest publishing news: Irving Brecher Dead; 2008 Costa Book Awards Shortlist; Nabokov’s The Original Of Laura Revealed; Patrick Ness Wins Booktrust Teenage Prize; Carrie Kania Profiled; The Lucky One to Warner Bros.; and Alicia Silverstone’s Diet Book

Irving Brecher, Witty Screenwriter, Dead at 94, reports New York Times
Known for his wit, Mr. Brecher wrote for the Marx Brothers and invented The Life of Riley TV sitcom. His autobiography The Wicked Wit of the West will be published in January by Ben Yehuda Press

2008 Costa Book Awards Shortlist Announced, reports The Bookseller
The overall winner of the Costa Book of the Year will be on January 27th and will win £25,000

Vladimir Nabokov’s Son Reveals Details of His Father’s Last Novel, reports The Independent
Entitled The Original Of Laura, it was described by Dmitri Nabokov as "an extraordinarily original work" which was "captivating" but also "not necessarily always pleasant—shocking in some ways"

Patrick Ness Wins Booktrust Teenage Prize, reports The Bookseller
The 2008 Prize is awarded for his novel The Knife of Never Letting Go, his first book for young adults

Carrie Kania Profiled in New York Observer
Leon Neyfakh takes an in-depth look at the publisher of HarperPerennial

Warner Bros. Acquires Movie Rights to The Lucky One, reports Variety
Nicholas Sparks latest bestseller from Grand Central Publishing will be produced by Denise Di Novi

Rodale Signs Up Alicia Silverstone for Diet Book, reports UPI
The Kind Diet will be pubbed in the fall of 2009 and will include a 3-step diet program and 75 vegan and macrobiotic recipes