Regina Hayes and Ken Wright at Viking have acquired Sarah Dessen's 13th novel, Once and for All, set in the chaotic world of wedding planning. Louna, just finishing high school, has seen every sort of wedding from beach to ballroom. Her view of the longevity of love and marriage is cynical: her own first love ended tragically, another reason to close her heart to handsome, happy-go-lucky Ambrose, who has never set his heart on any girl before Louna. It's set for summer 2017; Leigh Feldman at Leigh Feldman Literary negotiated the deal for world rights.
Andrea Spooner at Little, Brown has bought Florence Gonsalves's debut novel, Love and Other Carnivorous Plants, with a voice pitched as "Lena Dunham meets Sarah Dessen, with a dollop of Amy Schumer." The story features a disillusioned 19-year-old who takes a break from the pre-med grind at Harvard, only to confront the risk of being consumed by her eating and anxiety disorders – and her growing affection toward an edgy, older girl. Publication is scheduled for spring 2018; Danielle Burby at Hannigan Salky Getzler brokered the auction for world English rights.
Jennifer Ung at Simon Pulse has acquired Gloria Chao's debut novel, tentatively titled American Panda. Inspired by the author's experiences as a second-generation Taiwanese-American, the novel follows 17-year-old Mei, whose parents want her to become a doctor and marry a Taiwanese Ivy Leaguer despite her germophobia and crush on a Japanese classmate. Publication is planned for spring 2018; Kathleen Rushall at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency did the deal for world English rights.
Kaylan Adair at Candlewick has bought world English rights to Audrey Coulthurst (l.) and Paula Garner's YA contemporary novelStarworld. The novel follows two very different high school girls with painful home lives who fall into an intense text-message-based friendship built around an imaginary world, until their real lives unravel and one falls in love with the other. It's slated for fall 2018; Alexandra Machinist at ICM Partners represented Coulthurst and Molly Jaffa at Folio Jr./Folio Literary Management represented Garner.
T.S. Ferguson at Harlequin Teen has acquired Australian author Will Kostakis's The Sidekicks, the story of three teen boys leading very different lives who share one thing in common – their best friend, who has recently died. The book follows Ryan, Harley, and Miles as they work through their grief and are drawn back to one another despite their differences. The book is scheduled for fall 2017; Sarah Williams at the Sophie Hicks Agency negotiated the deal for U.S. rights.
Claudia Gabel at HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books has bought North American rights to Caitlin Kittredge's Season of the Witch, a YA Gothic thriller. The story follows Ivy, whose mother tried to drown her when she was eight, convinced there was something evil in her; now 16, Ivy has been sent to live with a distant relative on a remote island after her mother's suicide, where she starts to believe that her mother might have been right. Publication is set for fall 2018; Barry Goldblatt at Barry Goldblatt Literary brokered the deal.
Marvel Comics has bought Corinne Duyvis's new prose novel set in the Guardians of the Galaxy world. Titled Collect Them All, the story follows the Guardians' discovery that someone is planting stolen branches of Groot's and selling the newly grown saplings across the galaxy, forcing them into an uneasy alliance. Publication is planned for spring 2017; Ammi-Joan Paquette at Erin Murphy Literary Agency did the deal for world rights.
Liesa Abrams at Simon Pulse has acquired North American rights toFour Letter Word by Christa Desir, a contemporary YA novel about 16-year-old Chloe who befriends a new student with the same name, but soon is drawn into a high-stakes game with potentially dire consequences. It's slated for summer 2018; Barry Goldblatt at Barry Goldblatt Literary negotiated the deal.
Joy Peskin at Farrar, Straus and Giroux has acquired world rights to Lucky Little Things, a middle grade novel by Girlbomb author Janice Erlbaum, about what happens when Emma, an eighth grader who hasn't had much good fortune recently, receives a mysterious note informing her that her luck is about to change. Publication is scheduled for 2018; the author represented herself.
Alison Weiss at Sky Pony Press has bought Printz Honor author Craig Silvey's middle grade novella, The Amber Amulet, about a boy who patrols his neighborhood as a superhero, protecting citizens from chaos, mayhem, evil, and low tire pressure, until he encounters a challenging case that will change his life forever. Publication is set for fall 2017; Thomasin Chinnery at the Zeitgeist Media Group brokered the deal for North American rights.
Amanda Maciel at Scholastic has acquired four early chapter books in the new Wish Fairy series by Lisa Ann Scott. The series features a fairy who grants a girl seven wishes for saving her life. Publication for all four books is planned for 2018; Jennifer Unter of the Unter Agency did the deal for world rights.
Ann Kelley at Random House/Schwartz & Wade has bought author-illustrator Vern Kousky's Harold Loves His Winter Hat, a picture book about a bear who loves his winter hat so much he wears it even in the summertime – until a crow snatches it off his head. Publication is slated for summer 2018; Elana Roth Parker at the Laura Dail Literary Agency negotiated the deal for world rights.
Christina Pulles at Sterling has acquired world rights to Wendy Wahman's Pony in the City, a retro-yet-contemporary picture book about a plucky little pony whose curiosity to find out what children do leads him on a journey of discovery. Publication is slated for fall 2017; Erzsi Deàk at Hen & ink Literary Studio represented the author-illustrator.
Amy Novesky at Cameron + Company has bought author-illustrator Linda Olafsdottir's Play?, a picture book about the ins and outs of making friends in toddlerhood. It's scheduled for spring 2017. Abigail Samoun at Red Fox Literary brokered the deal for world rights.
Zaneta Jung at Sterling has acquired world rights for Rocket Shoes, Sharon Skinner's debut picture book, illustrated by Ward Jenkins, the story of a boy whose dreams of flying in a pair of magical sneakers are crushed when his neighbors complain, and who must choose between following the new rules or breaking them when he discovers a neighbor in trouble. Publication is planned for October 2017. Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary represented the author and Jennifer Laughran of Andrea Brown Literary Agency represented the illustrator.
Emily Easton at Crown has bought world rights to Doug Kuntz and Amy Shrodes's Lost and Found Cat, illustrated by Sue Cornelison, the true story of the international effort to reunite a lost cat with his family after they escaped from a country besieged by war. It's scheduled for spring 2017. Caryn Wiseman at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency represented the authors and Claire Easton at Painted Words represented the illustrator.
