Cindy Loh at Bloomsbury has acquired two novels in a new series by Danielle Paige, author of Stealing Snow and the Dorothy Must Die series; Vicky Leech at Bloomsbury U.K. will edit. This YA fantasy series will weave a unique spin on the “"airy godmother" character and explores this infamous heroine's origin story from charmed teen to wish-wielding enchantress. The first novel launches in fall 2018, followed by the sequel in fall 2019. Joanna Volpe at New Leaf Literary & Media sold world English rights.
Erica Sussman at HarperTeen has won North American rights, in a preempt, to debut author Sara Holland's YA fantasy The Everless Girl, as well as an untitled sequel. The novel, pitched as Red Queen meetsDowntown Abbey, is set in a kingdom where time is a commodity that flows through the blood and is hoarded by the rich, and centers on a 17-year-old girl who becomes the next handmaiden at the Everless Estate only to find herself at the heart of a centuries-old rivalry over the secret to immortal life. Publication is scheduled for winter 2018; Stephen Barbara at InkWell Management brokered the two-book deal on behalf of Paper Lantern Lit.
Sarah Dotts Barley at Flatiron Books has bought Australian author Shivaun Plozza's YA novel, Frankie, about a girl from a gritty Melbourne suburb searching for the truth about her family and herself, and who has only one person in her life willing to help: a boy with "stupidly blue eyes," a criminal record, and plenty of secrets of his own. Publication is planned for fall 2017; Allison Hellegers at Rights People did the deal for North American rights on behalf of Penguin Random House Australia.
Katherine Harrison at Knopf has acquired a contemporary YA novel by A.E. Kaplan, We Regret to Inform You, in which top student Mischa is rejected by every college she applies to – because someone changed her transcript; she and a group of nerd hacker girls team up to find the culprit and clear her record. Publication is slated for August 2018; Hannah Bowman at Liza Dawson Associates sold world rights.
Nicole Frail at Sky Pony has bought Michele Bacon's Antipodes, a contemporary coming-of-age YA novel about an ambitious 17-year-old girl forced to go to New Zealand on a foreign exchange program to improve her chances of getting into an Ivy League school. Publication is set for fall 2017; Andrea Somberg at Harvey Klinger negotiated the deal for world rights.
Navah Wolfe at Simon & Schuster has acquired Alexandra Sirowy's First We Were IV, a thriller in which four teens who grew up together form a secret society to bond them for life, and how the society takes on a life of its own and spirals out of control. It's scheduled for summer 2017; Brianne Johnson at Writers House negotiated the deal for world rights.
Amanda Maciel at Scholastic has bought Orli Zuravicky's Ghostcoming! and Crushed, the first two books in a debut middle-grade series, Happily Ever Afterlife, about a newly crossed-over ghost girl who's just trying to find her footing – literally – at Limbo Central Middle School. The books are slated for simultaneous publication in 2017; the author was unagented.
Elise Howard at Algonquin has acquired world rights to Votes for Women! by Winifred Conkling. The book, illustrated with photographs, tells the story of the American women who fought for the right to vote, from the first meeting of a movement for women's rights in 1848 until the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920. Publication is planned for 2018; Sarah Davies at Greenhouse Literary negotiated the deal.
Caitlyn Dlouhy at Atheneum's Caitlyn Dlouhy Books has bought Barbara Bottner's latest picture book, Is She Good? , about a girl whose feisty collection of stuffed animals bicker with one another and with her as she endeavors to have a tea party. Publication is projected for spring 2019; Rick Richter at Zachary Shuster Harmsworth brokered the deal for world rights.
Kelly Barrales-Saylor at Sourcebooks Jabberwocky has acquired world rights to Oh, Bartelby! and an untitled second picture book, written and illustrated by Julia Patton. Oh, Bartelby! tells the tale of a loveable, bumbling, and very long dachshund who unknowingly causes chaos as he navigates the city. It’s scheduled for December 2017; Alli Brydon of Bright USA brokered the two-book deal.
Kate Harrison at Dial has bought world rights to Ruth Spiro's Maxine and Milton (l.), at auction, in a three-book deal, with illustrations by Holly Hatam. Inspired by her companion and muse, a pet goldfish named Milton, Maxine is determined to make the world a better place, one crazy contraption at a time. Publication is planned for spring 2018; Susan Hawk at the Bent Agency represented the author and Christy Tugeau Ewers at Christina A. Tugeau Artist Agency represented the illustrator.
Lee Wade at Random House's Schwartz & Wade Books has acquired world rights to Rachael Cole's (l.) Baby, I Will Read to You, illustrated by debut artist Melissa Crowton. The book is an ode from a parent to a baby about the words they will share – talking, singing, and reading – throughout the child's life. Publication is set for fall 2018; the author and illustrator were unagented.
Philippe Werck at Clavis Books has bought world rights to If You Want to Fall Asleep, a picture book by Jackie Azua Kramer (l.) about Mama Mouse's recipe for falling asleep. Lisa Brandenburg will illustrate; Clavis will publish a Dutch edition in summer 2017 and an English edition in summer 2018. Stephen Fraser at the Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency represented the author; the artist was unagented.
Mara Conlon at Peter Pauper Press has acquired world rights to Linda E. Marshall's picture bookMommy, Baby, and Me, to be illustrated by Ged Adamson. A dog's world is turned upside down when his owner brings home a baby; how will he adjust to this two-legged, furless creature who is hogging all the attention? Publication is slated for fall 2017. Christa Heschke at McIntosh & Otis represented the author, and Isabel Atherton at Creative Authors represented the illustrator.
Katie Cunningham at Candlewick has bought world rights to a debut picture book, Rescue and Jessica by Jessica Kensky and Patrick Downes, based on the true story of the Boston Marathon bombing survivors' life with Jessica's black lab assistance dog. The book aims to demystify physical disabilities and to showcase the talents and positive effects of service dogs. Scott Magoon will illustrate; publication is scheduled for spring 2018. Clelia Gore at Martin Literary & Media Management represented the authors and Rebecca Sherman at Writers House represented the illustrator.
Emily Meehan at Disney has acquired Coretta Scott King Award winner Jason Reynolds's YA novel featuring Marvel Super Hero character Miles Morales, the first African-American and Puerto Rican character to become Spider-Man, for Marvel Press. The book will publish in summer 2017; Elena Giovinazzo at Pippin Properties sold world rights.
Alice Jerman at HarperTeen has bought Jessica Leake's YA debut From Blood and Ash (working title), plus an a second untitled standalone YA novel. The first book is a romantic fantasy inspired by Norse and Celtic mythology, set in ancient Ireland, about two enemies who are forced to unite to stop a dangerous power that threatens their world. Publication is scheduled for winter 2018; Brianne Johnson of Writers House brokered the deal for world English rights.
Rachel Stark of Sky Pony Press has acquired debut author Miriam McNamara's YA novel, The Unbinding of Mary Reade, based on the true story of a girl who disguised herself as a boy in order to sail with the infamous pirates Anne Bonny and "Calico" Jack Rackham. Publication is slated for fall 2017; Linda Epstein of Emerald City Literary Agency negotiated the deal for world rights.
Kristen Pettit at HarperCollins has bought AJ Steiger's contemporary YA novel When My Heart Joins the Thousand, in which Alvie – a girl with Asperger's who has a passion for Watership Down – falls in love with another young "misfit." Publication has been set for February 2018; Claire Anderson-Wheeler at Regal Hoffmann & Associates did the deal for North American rights.
Emma Ledbetter at Atheneum has acquired Our Story Begins, a middle grade anthology edited by Elissa Brent Weissman. This collection answers the perennial kid question, "Did you write when you were my age?," by compiling the childhood writing and artwork of 26 well-known children's authors and illustrators. Publication is planned for summer 2017; Flip Brophy at Sterling Lord Literistic brokered the deal for world rights.
Kelly Barrales-Saylor at Sourcebooks Jabberwocky has bought Women Who Dared, first in a series by Linda Skeer that introduces readers to fearless and adventurous women in history. Publication is scheduled for September 2017; Ginger Knowlton at Curtis Brown sold world rights in the three-book deal.
Allison Wortche at Knopf took North American rights, in a preempt, to a picture book by Matthew Burgess, The Unbudgeable Curmudgeon, illustrated by Fiona Woodcock. In the story, a girl wakes up to find a grouchy curmudgeon sitting at the kitchen table, and it's up to her to turn his frown upside down. Publication is planned for spring 2019; Elena Giovinazzo at Pippin Properties represented the author and Alli Brydon at Bright USA represented the illustrator.
Sally Doherty at Henry Holt has acquired world English rights to Bridget Heos's Stegothesaurus, illustrated by TL McBeth, in a two-book deal. The picture book features a dinosaur with an enriched vocabulary who meets his match. Publication is set for spring 2018; Liza Voges at Eden Street represented the author and Kirsten Hall at Catbird Productions represented the illustrator.
Arthur Levine at Scholastic's Arthur A. Levine Books has preempted Pixar artist Tony Piedra's debut picture book, The Greatest Adventure, about a boy and his grandfather, who find adventure in unexpected ways. Publication is slated for 2018; Adriana Dominguez at Full Circle Literary negotiated the deal for world rights.
Charles Nurnberg at Quarto's MoonDance Press has bought world rights to a picture book adaptation of Peter Pan, written by Nurnberg and Joe Rhatigan, as part of the Modern Retellings series, to be illustrated by debut picture-book artist Victoria Tentler-Krylov. Publication is scheduled for fall 2017; Studio Goodwin Sturges represented the illustrator.
Bethany Buck at Sky Pony Press has acquired world rights to The Golden Girls of Rio, a picture book by Nikkolas Smith about the gold medal winners of the 2016 Summer Olympics. It will publish in November 2016; the author-illustrator was unagented.
Michael Green at Philomel has bought Patricia Carlin's The Dogs Next Door, about the dogs who move in next door, and prove to be loud, messy, troublesome and outrageously fun new neighbors. It's slated for summer 2018; Daniel Lazar at Writers House sold world rights.
