Julie Rosenberg at Razorbill has acquired, at auction, North American rights to a duology by Lora Beth Johnson. In the first book, Goddess in the Machine, when a girl wakes from a cryogenic sleep on a planet she doesn't recognize, she must team up with the mysterious soldier who woke her to navigate a future world where technology is considered magic and its practitioners revered as Deities. The first book is scheduled for summer 2020; Victoria Marini at Irene Goodman brokered the two-book deal.
Kieran Viola at Disney-Hyperion has acquired world English rights to Hood, Jenny Elder Moke's debut. The historical adventure novel reimagines the myth of Robin Hood through the eyes of his teenage daughter, Isabelle, as she navigates thieves and mercenaries, handsome young outlaws, and a ruthless king who wants her family dead. Publication is set for spring 2020; Elizabeth Bewley at Sterling Lord Literistic did the deal.
Stephanie Stein at HarperTeen has bought, in an exclusive submission, Aleksandra Ross's debut YA fantasy, Don't Call the Wolf. Inspired by Polish folklore, the novel follows an enchanted queen fighting to protect her forest from a legendary dragon. Half-human, half-animal, she fears no monsters—until she saves a dragon-slayer with secrets of his own and discovers just how dark the woods really are. Publication is slated for winter 2020; Brent Taylor at TriadaUS negotiated the deal for U.S., Canadian, and open market rights.
Emilia Rhodes at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has bought Jacqueline Firkins's debut YA novel, tentatively titled Girl Undefined. In a modern take on Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, a 17-year-old girl wrestles with her unrequited crush on the boy next door while growing interested in the untrustworthy guy who is helping her stir up a little jealousy. The book is planned for fall 2019; Laura Bradford at Bradford Literary Agency brokered the deal for world English rights.
Heather Howland at Entangled Teen has acquired Victoria Scott's YA thriller, We Told Six Lies, in which 18-year-old Cobain's girlfriend vanishes, and he must sift through the memories and lies surrounding their turbulent relationship to find her before the police lock up their primary suspect—him. Publication is scheduled for March 2019; Sara Crowe at Pippin Properties negotiated the deal for world rights.
Nicole Otto at Macmillan/Imprint has preempted, in a two-book deal, Jessica Rinker's debut middle grade novel, The Dare Sisters, in a story billed as The Goonies meets Little Women, in which three sisters search for Blackbeard's missing treasure on Ocracoke Island to save their grandfather's good name and foil a scalawag who wants the treasure for himself. The first book is slated for publication in fall 2020, with the second to follow in fall 2021; Linda Epstein at Emerald City Literary did the deal for world English rights.
Emily Feinberg at Roaring Brook has bought Rebecca Jordan-Glum's debut picture book, tentatively titled Melt, about a group of compulsive Antarctic penguins that develop a disastrous love of campfires and discover the hard way that some things are meant to be shared. Publication is set for spring 2020; Erica Rand Silverman at Stimola Literary Studio handled the deal for world rights.
Lee Wade at Random House/Schwartz & Wade has acquired Lou Peacock (l.) and Christine Pym's Toby Is a Big Boy, a story of sibling rivalry, about a toddler's frustration over all the attention his baby sister is receiving. Publication is planned for summer 2019; Kate Wilson at Nosy Crow negotiated the deal for North American rights.
Alvina Ling at Little, Brown has bought world rights to E.B. White Award Honoree Richard T. Morris's Bear Came Along, illustrated by LeUyen Pham. The picture book is about a series of animals who didn't know just how much they needed each other until they find themselves together on a river adventure. Publication is scheduled for late spring 2019; Alice Tasman at Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency represented the author, and Linda Pratt at Wernick & Pratt Literary Agency represented the illustrator.
Margaret Anastas at HarperCollins has acquired Jory John's The Good Egg (l.), illustrated by Pete Oswald. The humorous picture book follow-up to The Bad Seedintroduces an egg under so much self-imposed pressure to be good that it cracks, before making an important and life-changing realization. The book is slated to publish in winter 2019; Kirsten Hall at Catbird Productions did the deal for world rights.
Phoebe Yeh at Crown has bought Emily Easton's (l.) Enough!: 20 Protesters Who Changed America, illustrated by Ziyue Chen. The book introduces young readers to America's most influential protesters—from Sam Adams and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., to Jazz Jennings and the students from Parkland, Fla. Ryan Deitsch—a survivor of the Parkland school shooting—will provide a foreword. Publication is set for fall 2018; the author represented herself, and Mela Bolinao at MB Artists represented the illustrator in the deal for world rights.
Joy Peskin and Trisha de Guzman at Farrar, Straus and Giroux have acquired world rights to Danielle Cohen Joseph's picture book, Tap Tap, illustrated by Olivier Ganthier. The book follows a spirited boy who wants to ride the taxi-bus service, called a tap tap, in Haiti. Publication is planned for spring 2020; the author and the illustrator were unagented.
Andrea Welch at S&S/Beach Lane has bought world rights to How to Find a Bird by Jennifer Ward (l.) (Mama Built a Little Nest), illustrated by Diana Sudyka (Sometimes Rain). The picture book celebrates the many joyful ways of finding and observing birds in nature. Publication is scheduled for 2020; Stefanie Von Borstel at Full Circle Literary represented the author, and Andrea Morrison and Rebecca Sherman at Writers House represented the illustrator.
Julie Matysik at Running Press Kids has acquired world rights to Lynn Plourde's The Boy Whose Face Froze Like That, illustrated by Russ Cox. The picture book stars a straight-laced boy who makes a funny face in the mirror, only to discover the consequences of the age-old adage: “Your face will freeze like that!” Publication is set for fall 2019; Susan Cohen at Writers House represented the author, and Danielle Smith at Lupine Grove Creative represented the illustrator.
Kristine Enderle at Magination Press has bought world rights to Danielle Dufayet's (l.) picture book, Fantastic You!, illustrated by Jennifer Zivion. The book encourages children to treat themselves with love, forgiveness and compassion, just like they would a best friend. Publication is slated for fall 2019; Karen Grencik at Red Fox Literary represented the author, and Mela Bolinao at MB Artists represented the illustrator.
Asia Citro at Innovation Press has acquired world rights to Evelyn the Adventurous Entomologist: The True Story of a World-Traveling Bug Hunter by Christine Evans (l.), a picture book biography of British entomologist and STEM pioneer Evelyn Cheesman. Yasmin Imamura will illustrate; publication is planned for fall 2019. Elizabeth Bennett at the Jill Corcoran Literary Agency represented the author, and the illustrator represented herself.
