Springtime in Bologna—great weather and, of course, great food. But there is a lot else on offer along the aisles of the book fair, from agents and publishers alike. We asked a sampling of attendees about the hot properties they will bringing with them next month.
Nancy Gallt, Nancy Gallt Literary Agency
Gallt will be featuring the third in Rick Riordan's bestselling Percy Jackson and the Greek Gods series, The Titan's Curse (Hyperion, May). Riordan is planning a total of five in the series, and the first two, The Lightning Thief and Sea of Monsters, have been sold in most major markets except Italy and Holland. Fox 2000 and Maverick Films have optioned the property, which is now in "active development," Gallt says. She'll be showing Michael Reisman's Simon Bloom, the Gravity Keeper, in which a boy discovers a book that allows him to manipulate the laws of physics—one at a time—to foil the plans of an evil cadre. A film option has been picked up by Universal, and all foreign rights are available. Also on offer is Betty G. Birney's Humphrey series, about this classroom hamster who learns a lot about life and kids as he accompanies each child home for the weekend. Japanese and Dutch rights have sold, and Faber is the U.K. publisher.
Rebecca Mancini, Houghton Mifflin
Rights to this year's Caldecott winner, David Wiesner's Flotsam, have been sold to China (both simplified and complex), Germany, France, Korea and Japan, and Mancini hopes to sell to more markets. There's also a new picture book from Caldecott Honor artist Steve Jenkins: Living Color, an introduction to exotic animals—by color, due out in October. "It's brand-new and hasn't been seen anywhere yet, but I have high hopes," Mancini says. Novelist/NPR commentator Daniel Pinkwater has a novel based on his own childhood in Hollywood, The Neddiad: How Neddie Took the Train, Went to Hollywood, and Saved Civilization. It's the story of how Neddie, a shaman, a ghost, three pals and a little maneuver known as the French substitution determine the fate of the world. Houghton will pub next month.
Tracey and Josh Adams, Adams
The husband-and-wife team has a historical novel from Margaret Peterson Haddix, creator of the bestselling Shadow Children series; in Uprising, three young women get caught in a fire—the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. S&S will release it in September, but Adams Literary retains foreign rights. They also have The Hound of Rowan, first in a contemporary fantasy series called The Tapestry from debut author Henry H. Neff, though Random House has world rights. And two suspense novels are on offer: Lizard People by Charlie Price (a Roaring Brook title, for August), from the author of Dead Connection; and Sight by Adrienne Maria Vrettos (McElderry Books, Oct.), a YA novel by the author of Skin; Egmont has U.K. rights.
Joan Rosen, HarperCollins
The Harper title that arrives with the most advance attention is Ana's Story, Jenna Bush's nonfiction account of a 17-year-old HIV-positive single mother in Panama. Harper has world rights and will release the book in October with 500,000 copies; no foreign rights have been sold. From Newbery Medalist Avi comes a middle—grade ghost story, The Seer of Shadows, the tale of a 14-year-old photographer's apprentice who gets caught up in a supernatural web of deceit. J.otto Seibold debuts on the Harper list with Seamore, the Very Forgetful Porpoise, about a porpoise who can't remember that his best friend is a killer whale. Also on offer is the forthcoming Magic Thief trilogy by debut novelist Sarah Prineas, in which a boy finds himself apprenticed to a wizard; French, German, Greek, Spanish, Danish and Dutch rights have been sold, and a U.K. deal is in the works.
Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio
Stimola will be showing a middle-grade novel, The V.O.E. of Merilee Marvelous by Suzanne Crowley (Greenwillow, Sept), about a girl with Asperger's syndrome, who leads a Very Ordered Existence until two strangers come to town and change everything. German rights have been sold to Bertelsmann Verlag. Liz Szabla pre-empted Carpe Diem (Sept.) by Autumn Cornwell for Feiwel & Friends' spring launch; this debut novel stars Vassar Spore, a 16-year-old overachiever whose life plan is sent into a tailspin when she is thrust into an unwanted backpacking adventure with a bohemian grandmother. Carlsen Verlag has German rights. Wendy Lamb at Random House acquired The Opposite of Invisible by Liz Gallagher in a two-book pre-empt, and will pub in April 2008); it stars Alice, a quirky art student, who learns the difference between a crush and love, and between love and best-friendship. Italian rights have been sold to RCS Libri/Fabbri. And Teach Me author R.A. Nelson has a YA psychological thriller, Breathe My Name (Razorbill, Nov.), about a girl who must address a past in which, one horrific morning, her biological mother smothered her children one by one, and only Frances survived. German rights are under option at Ravensburger.
Angharad Kowal, Simon & Schuster
For the younger set, S&S has the Trucktown series by Jon Sciesczka, illustrated by Loren Long, David Gordon and David Shannon, which debuts here in 2008. S&S plans a multi-faceted publishing program across multiple formats and imprints. Girl detective Nancy Drew, who has been solving mysteries for more than 75 years, got a facelift a few years back—a revamping of her series—and the movie due out this June starring Emma Roberts should bring the property added attention. French rights have been sold to Bayard. And Neal Shusterman has penned a suspense novel called Unwind, due out in November. Its premise: after the Second Civil War, it was decided that human life is inviolate until age 13—but the loophole is, parents can get rid of their unwanted teenagers—now three "Unwinds" are on the run.
Barry Goldblatt, Barry Goldblatt Literary Agency
Goldblatt gave word of three projects he'll be talking up in Italy. The first, City of Bones (first in The Mortal Instruments trilogy), about a Brooklyn teen drawn into a world of demons and Shadowhunters after her mother disappears. McElderry is publishing the book next month, and rights have been sold to Walker Books in the U.K., Mondadori in Italy, Pocket Jeunesse in France, Arena Verlag in Germany and Borgen Forlag in Denmark. Then there's the Chasing Yesterday trilogy by Robin Wasserman, about a girl who awakes with no memory at all, and soon discovers that the one thing more terrible than forgetting her past is remembering it; Scholastic will release the first book, Awakening, in May. And he has (wife) Libba Bray's The Sweet Far Thing, the conclusion to her bestselling trilogy that began with A Great and Terrible Beauty, which will be published by Delacorte in September. Rights to the previous two titles have been sold to Simon & Schuster in the U.K., dTV in Germany, Gallimard in France, RBA in Spain (which has world Spanish rights), Rocco in Portugal, WSOY in Finland, Amarin in Thailand and Biovega in Croatia.
Maria Kjoller, Farrar, Straus & Giroux
The major title that Kjoller will have at her stand is a September release from Frances Foster Books, The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sís, a personal history of the Cold War as experienced by a boy growing up under Communism. In what she calls his most personal work to date, the Caldecott Honor author and MacArthur Fellow uses his trademark illustrative style, combined with entries from his own diaries, to portray everyday life in Czechoslovakia. Rights have been sold to Hanser in Germany, Grasset in France and Labyrint in the Czech Republic.
Steven Chudney, The Chudney Agency
Chudney has Do the Math, a middle-grade series by Wendy Lichtman; Greenwillow will publish the first volume in June, and Korean rights have gone to Gimm-Young Books in a two-book deal. Also on offer: the Youngest Templar trilogy by Michael P. Spradlin, about an orphan whose life changes forever when he joins the Knights Templar on their crusade to the Holy Land. Tim Travaglini at Putnam made a pre-emptive offer and bought the trilogy, which debuts in spring 2008 with The Keeper of the Grail. Also being shown: Anahita's Woven Riddle, a novel set in 19th-century Iran by Meghan Nuttall Sayres (Abrams, Nov.). In it, a nomadic weaver refuses the arranged marriage by her father, and weaves a riddle into her wedding dowry carpet; only the suitor who discovers its meaning will win her hand in marriage. Foreign rights have sold to Keter in Israel.
Donne Forrest, Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers
A May picture book that's been attracting attention stateside is I'm the Biggest Thing in the Ocean by Kevin Sherry, a debut novel from Dial about a giant squid with an ego to match. Forrest will also have the fourth and newest Skippyjon Jones picture book, Skippyjon Jones and the Big Bones by Judy Schachner (Dutton, Oct.); the previous three titles have sold close to a quarter of a million copies. And Thirteen Reasons Why, a YA novel from debut author Jay Asher, looks into the minds of a suicidal girl and the boy who loves her from afar. Razorbill is printing 40,000 copies in hardcover, for an October pub.