Agent Laurie Liss, last in the news for repping the memoir of 98-year-old Jessie Lee Brown Foveaux (coming from Warner this fall), is back with another tale from the heartland: Another Autumn: The Rufus Chronicle, a reminiscence by Kansas City Star columnist Charles Gusewelle about a now-deceased canine companion (don't worry; some puppies live on). The book, originally published by the Kansas City Star Company in September 1996, went on to sell about 10,000 copies. Last week Liss held an auction that ended up having three final hot bidders. Ballantine senior editor Virginia Faber won hard/soft North American rights with a rumored mid-six-figure offer and plans a rush fall release.