DEAL OF THE WEEK

Marshall ‘Chosen’ by Ballantine

Ballantine’s Mary Reynics bought world rights to Cynt Marshall’s You’ve Been Chosen: Thriving Through the Unexpected. Marshall is the Dallas Mavericks CEO, and the memoir, the publisher said, offers “hope and practical guidance for navigating life’s most difficult challenges.” The author grew up in poverty and went on to become one of AT&T’s first Black female officers, as well as the first Black woman to be CEO of an NBA franchise. The title is slated for September 2022. Jan Miller at Dupree Miller represented Marshall.

Dey Street Buys Gucci Guru’s Philosophy

Alessandro Michele, creative director of Gucci, sold a currently untitled book of “fashion philosophy” to Kate Napolitano at Dey Street in a world rights agreement. Set to be published in spring 2023 in the U.S. by the HarperCollins imprint—and simultaneously by HarperCollins Italia and HarperCollins UK—the book was written with Paris philosophy professor Emanuele Coccia (The Life of Plants). It will, Dey Street said, “show how traditionally distinct forms of creativity and intellectual pursuit—fashion and philosophy—are inextricably intertwined.” Italy’s Rosaria Carpinelli, who has an eponymous shingle, handled the sale.

Roc Lit Lands Fat Joe Memoir

For Roc Lit 101, Chris Jackson bought world rights to The Book of Jose, by multiplatinum-selling Grammy-nominated hip hop artist Joseph “Fat Joe” Cartagena. The publisher said the memoir will “explore how Joe overcame the drug- and violence-scarred South Bronx of the 1980s to blossom into one of the preeminent powerhouses of his generation.” The deal was negotiated without a literary agent, and The Book of Jose is set for November.


Altman Gives ‘Permission’ to Godine

Memoirist, essayist, and James Beard Award winner Elissa Altman (Poor Man’s Feast) sold On Permission in a North American rights deal to Godine. Joshua Bodwell bought the book, slated for winter 2024, from Adriana Stimola at the Stimola Literary Studio. The agent described On Permission as “a craft manifesto and meditation meant to inspire, support, and lead creatives in every arena through the emotional hazards, pitfalls, and joys of art making.”

Atria Gets Hitched to Walters’s ‘Nigerwife’

Vanessa Walters’s debut novel, The Nigerwife, was acquired in a six-figure preempt by Natalie Hallak at Atria Books. Hallak took North American rights from Claire Friedman at InkWell Management. Atria said the book follows a young British woman who, after marrying a rich man in Lagos, joins a community of foreign women living in Nigeria known as the Nigerwives. When the woman mysteriously disappears on a boat trip, “her estranged auntie travels to Lagos to discover what happened to her, uncovering a dark web of secrets beneath her picture-perfect life.” Walters is a playwright and journalist, and the book, which Atria compared to novels like My Sister, the Serial Killer and Black Cake, is set for summer 2023.

RH Nabs Meacham’s Lincoln Bio

Kate Medina at Random House bought world rights to And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle by Jon Meacham (His Truth Is Marching On), who holds the Rogers Chair in the American Presidency at Vanderbilt University and is a Pulitzer Prize–winning biographer. The book, RH said, will chronicle “the life and moral evolution of Abraham Lincoln,” exploring “why and how he confronted secession, threats to democracy, and the tragedy of slavery in order to expand the possibilities of America.” Meacham did not use an agent in the deal. And There Was Light is slated for October.


Mather’s Rom-Com Embraces Blackstone

For Blackstone, Daniel Ehrenhaft bought North American rights to YA author Adriana Mather’s debut adult title, Mom Com. The romantic comedy was sold by Rosemary Stimola at the Stimola Literary Studio, who said it tells of a young woman “who, after 10 years away, returns home after her father’s death to fulfill her dream of running his beloved bakery, only to find he has left half of the business to her first love—someone she had vowed never to speak to again.” Mom Com is slated for December 2023.

Atria Heads to Rio with Rogers

Tropicália, the debut novel by recent Columbia MFA grad Harold Rogers, was acquired by Lindsay Sagnette and Jade Hui at Atria Books in a North American rights deal. Atria said the Rio De Janeiro–set multigenerational saga follows the Cunha clan as they contend with the return of a family member “whose resurfacing causes old secrets to come to light in the climactic days before a New Year’s Eve party.” The book explores “the heartbreak and hope of what it means to be from two homes, two peoples, and two worlds.” Tropicália, which is set for summer 2023, was sold by Chris Clemans at Janklow & Nesbit.

Avery Inks Korean Vegan to Double

Cookbook author Joanne Lee Molinaro, also known as the Korean Vegan, sold two cookbooks to Lucia Watson at Avery. Korean Vegan: Now Eat This will, the publisher said, feature “over 100 simple vegan recipes, some with a Korean twist, along with life lessons and intimate stories about finding purpose, fulfilling relationships, and more.” The second book in the deal, Jiang, is a cookbook about Korean sauces. Charlie Brotherstone at Brotherstone Creative Management represented Molinaro in the world rights agreement.