Michelle Frey at Knopf has acquired the first children's book by documentarian Ken Burns (l.). Grover Cleveland, Again! will be a full-color picture book treasury of American presidents, with each leader receiving a full-page spread, and Grover Cleveland, the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms, appearing twice. Gerald Kelley will illustrate; publication is scheduled for May 2016. Jay Mandel at WME represented Burns, and Anne Moore Armstrong at the Bright Agency, represented Kelley in the deal for North American rights.
Anne Heltzel at Abrams has bought, at auction, a YA duology by Laure Eve. In The Graces, a teenage girl becomes transfixed by a trio of wealthy and glamorous siblings who wield power over their community, fueling rumors of witchcraft. It's scheduled for publication in fall 2016, with the second to follow in 2017. Lizzie Bishop at Faber & Faber negotiated the two-book, six-figure deal for U.S. rights, following the sale at auction of world English rights to Faber & Faber by Sam Copeland of Rogers, Coleridge and White Ltd.
Stacey Barney at Putnam has pre-empted H.M. Bouwman's middle-grade historical fantasy,The Traded Girl, a multi-plotted mythology of immigration that brings together the Zong slave ship, the fall of Saigon, an enormous Raftworld in search of a home, and two Kraken in love; as well as a second, as yet untitled book. Publication is slated for fall 2016; Tricia Lawrence at Erin Murphy Literary Agency did the six-figure deal.
Erica Finkel at Abrams has acquired Emma Wunsch's debut YA novel The Movie Version. In the story, 16-year old Amelia Anderson must deal with the fallout of her brother's schizophrenia diagnosis while balancing her first serious relationship, friendships, and a budding interest in filmmaking. Publication is planned for fall 2016; Rachel Orr at Prospect Agency brokered the deal for world rights.
Reka Simonsen at Atheneum has bought a new middle-grade novel by J. Anderson Coats, The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming. It tells the story of a headstrong girl with big dreams who boards a steamship bound for Washington Territory, as part of the Mercer Expedition of 1866. Publication is set for spring 2017; Ammi-Joan Paquette at Erin Murphy Literary Agency negotiated the deal for world rights.
Amy Cloud at S&S/Aladdin acquired Alison Cherry's Willows vs. Wolverines, a middle-grade novel in which a girl invents a fictitious, legendarily brilliant prankster older brother to persuade her new summer camp bunkmates to let her take the lead in the camp's longstanding prank war. Publication is planned for summer 2017; Holly Root of Waxman Leavell Literary Agency did the deal for world English rights.
Anne Schwartz at Random House's Schwartz & Wade imprint has bought an untitled chapter book about Strongheart, the early canine film star, by Los Angeles Times Book Prize winner Candace Fleming. It's scheduled for fall 2016; Ethan Ellenberg at the Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency negotiated the deal for world rights.
Victoria Rock at Chronicle has acquired world rights to Mabel by Rowboat Watkins, author-illustrator of Rude Cakes. The new book tells the story of a lonely mermaid who learns that the secret to happiness is often right under your nose. Publication is set for spring 2017; the deal for world rights was brokered by Rosemary Stimola of Stimola Literary Studio.
Andrew Rushton of NorthSouth has acquired world English rights to Gordon & Tapir, a picture book by German author-illustrator Sebastian Meschenmoser, directly from its publisher, Thienemann Esslinger. The book tells the comical story of odd-couple housemates – a particular penguin and an untidy tapir. Publication is scheduled for February 2016.
Liz Bicknell of Candlewick has bought Carole Lexa Schaefer's (l.) American Hands: A Crafts Sampler, a picture book to be illustrated by Becca Stadtlander. The book offers a selection of a dozen early American craft pieces, each accompanied by a brief fictionalized story showcasing the item as it might originally have been used. Publication is planned for fall 2017. Schaefer is unagented; Anne Moore Armstrong of the Bright Group represented Stadtlander in the deal for world rights.
Andrew Karre at Dutton Children's Books has acquired two books by E.K. Johnston. The first book, Exit, Pursued by a Bear, riffs on Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale, reimagining the character of the queen who becomes a statue as a devastatingly popular cheerleader who refuses to become a cautionary tale after she's sexually assaulted. It’s scheduled for spring 2016. The second book, That Inevitable Victorian Thing, imagines a near-future world where the British Empire never fell and teenage life looks very different. Josh Adams of Adams Literary brokered the deal for North American rights.
Nancy Inteli at HarperCollins has bought at auction an interactive book from Kristina Webb called Color Me Creative: Unlock Your Imagination. Webb, a New Zealand teenager, has 1.5 million followers on Instagram. The book will consist of both an autobiography and a series of artistic exercises. Publication is slated for fall 2015; Webb was represented by Matthew Elblonk at DeFiore & Company in the deal for world rights.
Connie Hsu at Roaring Brook has acquired Patrick Griffin's Last Breakfast on Earth by Ned Rust, a James Patterson co-author. This first book in a series, pitched as a middle-grade The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, follows a 12-year-old boy's adventures in a parallel, screen-obsessed world, where he learns that he and a giant rabbit are the key to saving the universe. It's scheduled for spring 2016; the author negotiated the deal for world rights.
Amy Cloud at S&S/Aladdin has bought Chub and the Cadre of Evil by debut author Mark Maciejewski. The story is about a bald middle-school outcast who becomes an unlikely hero when he decides to bring down his arch-nemesis and destroys an evil empire in the process. Publication is set for summer 2017; Sarah Davies at the Greenhouse Literary Agency did the two-book deal for North American rights.
Stacey Friedberg at Dial Books for Young Readers has acquired world English rights to Catacomb Hill by Charlotte Salter. It's a debut middle-grade novel about a headstrong girl who searches for a mysterious object in a mansion surrounded by sea monsters. Publication is scheduled for spring 2017; the deal was handled by Allison Hellegers at Rights People on behalf of Kirsty McLachlan at David Godwin & Associates.
Janine O'Malley at Farrar, Straus and Giroux has bought Leslie Margolis's new middle-grade novel, We Are Party People, about 12-year-old Pixie Peterson will do anything to blend in with the crowd, but must step in the spotlight with the help of her friends. It will be published in fall 2017; Laura Langlie of the Laura Langlie Agency brokered the deal for world English rights.
Calista Brill at First Second has acquired a middle-grade graphic novel from Cathy G. Johnson, entitled No Dogs Allowed, a story about a soccer team of misfit girls. Publication is slated for 2017; Jen Linnan of Linnan Literary negotiated the deal for world rights.
Andrea Welch at S&S's Beach Lane Books has bought The Antlered Ship by Dashka Slater (l.), to be illustrated by brothers Eric Fan (center) and Terry Fan (r.). The book is about a fox, three deer, and a flock of pigeons who set out to find answers to important questions, and discover that they have created the very things they were seeking. Publication is scheduled for fall 2017; Erin Murphy of Erin Murphy Literary Agency brokered the deal for Slater, and Kirsten Hall of the Catbird Agency represented the illustrators.
Jill Davis at HarperCollins imprint Katherine Tegen Books has acquired world rights to two titles by Tammi Sauer, Truck, Truck, Goose, and an untitled Goose book. The books will be illustrated by Zoe Waring. Publication of Truck, Truck, Goose, a riff on the classic game “Duck, Duck, Goose,” is slated for summer 2017, with the second to follow in summer 2018. Laura Rennert at Andrea Brown Literary Agency represented the author, and Anne Moore Armstrong at the Bright Agency represented the artist.
Kevin Lewis at Disney-Hyperion has bought world rights to Groundhug Day, a picture book by Anne Marie Pace, to be illustrated by Christopher Denise, about Moose and his group of woodland friends who try to convince Groundhog to stay out to celebrate Valentine's Day instead of hiding from his own shadow. Publication is set for winter 2017; Linda Pratt at Wernick & Pratt represented the author and Emily van Beek at Folio Jr./Folio Literary Management represented the artist.
Julia Maguire at Knopf has acquired Miss Paul and the President by Dean Robbins, about Alice Paul, a suffragette determined to convince President Wilson to pass the 19th amendment granting women the right to vote. Nancy Zhang is signed to illustrate. Publication is scheduled for fall 2016; Marietta B. Zacker at Nancy Gallt negotiated the world rights deal for the author, the illustrator represented herself.
Jessica Echeverria at Lee & Low has bought Ixchel Makes a Rainbow by Linda Marshall (l.), illustrated by Elisa Chavarri, a picture book about a Mayan girl who learns to weave with colorful plastic to earn enough money for school and help clean the environment. Publication is slated for fall 2016; Christa Heschke at McIntosh & Otis represented the author and Deborah Wolfe represented the illustrator.
Jenna Pocius of Little Bee Books has acquired What Daddies Like, a picture book about the ways fathers and children play together, by Judy Carey Nevin (l.), with Steph Cleaver set to illustrate. This is a debut project for both author and artist. Publication is scheduled for spring 2017; Teresa Kietlinski of Prospect Agency represented both Nevin and Cleaver in the deal for world rights.
