Another Buffett

John Glusman at Harmony beat four other bidders in an auction for Peter Buffett’s Life Is What You Make It; Richard Pine at InkWell sold North American rights. Buffett, who forsook the chance to join his father’s business to pursue his own passion for music, will write about values, identity and growing up as one of Warren Buffett’s sons; as a young man, he was “given a fairly modest amount of money with the clear understanding that he should expect no more,” though he’s since been given stewardship of a billion dollars to be donated to charitable organizations. Publication is scheduled for spring 2010.

In a different slant on capitalism, chief business writer of the EconomistMatthew Bishop and Michael Green’s The Crisis of Capitalism went to John Mahaney at Crown Business for mid-six figures via Dan Mandel at Sanford Greenburger. This account of the near collapse of the modern global financial system and why it had to be rescued by the American government will look backward and forward to provide a blueprint for saving capitalism. Crown has world rights.

Debuts to Bantam, Harper

Caitlin Alexander at Bantam prevailed in an auction for Kathryn Wagner’s first novel, Dancing for Degas; Kirsten Manges sold North American rights. Compared to Girl with a Pearl Earring, the book is set in late 19th-century Paris and delivers a portrait of the Impressionist artist as seen through the eyes of his muse, a young ballerina. Bantam will publish in spring 2010.

For Harper Perennial, Claire Wachtel bought North American rights to a debut by Emily Gray Tedrowe titled Commuters; Alice Tasman at Jean Naggar made the sale. Set in a small New York town, the book explores the complex intertwining of love, family and class through its depiction of the shock waves caused by the marriage of one middle-class family’s 78-year-old matriarch to a wealthy, 81-year-old outsider.

More from Gerritsen, Palmer

Linda Marrow at Ballantine bought three new suspense novels by Dr. Tess Gerritsen via Meg Ruley at Jane Rotrosen, who sold North American rights. No details or pub dates yet; Ballantine just published Gerritsen’s The Keepsake last month, the final book in her old contract. Ruley also sold four new suspense books by Dr. Michael Palmer to Jennifer Enderlin at St. Martin’s, which will bring out Palmer’s The Second Opinion in February, the last book in his previous contract. SMP has North American rights in the new deal. Gerritsen and Palmer recently spent a weekend on Cape Cod team-teaching, for their ninth consecutive year, a conference for physicians who aspire to be writers.

Two in Pocket

Pocket senior editor Kathy Sagan acquired a new book by The Girlfriends’ Guide to Pregnancy author Vicki Iovine via Dan Strone at Trident; this one is titled The Girlfriends’ Guide to Teenagers. Pocket has world rights.

Elsewhere at Pocket, Anthony Ziccardi and Ed Schlesinger bought Federal undercover agent Louie Diaz and screenwriter Neal Hirschfeld’s Dancing with the Devil via Frank Weimann at the Literary Group International. This is an account of Diaz’s front-page cases and the operation that brought down Nicky Barnes, the most murderous drug czar in American history. Pocket has North American rights.

Huh Strikes Again

Ben Huh has sold an untitled, illustrated book based on his Web site graphjam.com, which features graphical representations of pop culture, to Patrick Mulligan at Gotham via KateMcKean at Howard Morhaim. Huh also administers the site icanhascheezburger.com, home of LOLcats; Gotham has just published a book based on that site that is now on the New York Times bestseller list, and McKean also made that sale. Gotham has U.S. rights to the new book.

McHugh Takes Two

Da Capo Lifelong senior editor Katie McHugh preempted world rights to Cami Walker’s 29 Gifts via Rita Rosenkranz. Walker’s story of her struggle with multiple sclerosis focuses on how a healer’s prescription to give away 29 gifts in 29 days ignited Walker’s energy and inspired her to create a worldwide 29-Day Giving Challenge. Pub date is fall 2009.

McHugh also bought world English rights to Dr. Neal Barnard’s Go Vegan Cookbook on an exclusive submission from Mary Ann Naples at the Creative Culture. Barnard’s all-vegan cookbook, written with Robyn Webb, features 125 recipes plus menus to reverse diabetes, promote permanent weight loss and improve cholesterol and blood pressure.