Mekisha Telfer at Roaring Brook has acquired, in a preempt, We Deserve Monuments by Lambda Literary and MacDowell Fellow Jas Hammonds. This YA debut follows a queer, Black, biracial teen who moves to small-town Georgia to live with her estranged grandmother and becomes entangled in a web of family secrets, the town's racist history, and her growing feelings for the girl next door. Publication is slated for summer 2022; Suzie Townsend at New Leaf Literary & Media negotiated the two-book deal for world English rights.
Ruta Rimas at Razorbill has bought, at auction, Dark and Shallow Lies, a supernatural thriller by Ginny Myers Sain. The YA debut follows 17-year-old Grey as she searches for answers about the disappearance of her best friend in a small town where magic festers beneath the surface and where a years-old secret threatens to upend everything she thought she knew about herself, her family, and her home. Publication is set for fall 2021; Peter Knapp at Park & Fine Literary and Media did the two-book deal for North American rights.
Andrew Arnold at HarperAlley has acquired, in a preempt, Sunhead, a YA graphic novel written and illustrated by transmasc Israeli creator Alex Assan, in which the somewhat odd and outspoken Rotem finds an unlikely friend in her shy classmate when the two bond over their shared love of a vampire book in 2008 Tel Aviv. Publication of the first book is planned for 2023; Britt Siess at Britt Siess Creative Management brokered the two-book deal for North American rights.
Deanna McFadden at Wattpad has bought world rights to How to Be the Best Third Wheel by debut YA author and Watty Award grand prize winner Loridee De Villa. This contemporary coming-of-age novel follows 16-year-old Lara de la Cruz as she tries to navigate life, love, and high school with her three best friends... and their new boyfriends. Publication is scheduled for spring/summer 2022; the author represented herself.
Karen Wojtyla at S&S/McElderry has acquired The Swallows' Flight by Hilary McKay, following the next generation of characters from her Costa Children's Book Award-winning The Skylarks' War as they move from childhood to the threshold of adulthood amid the chaos and conflict of WWII. Publication is slated for fall 2021; Molly Ker Hawn at the Bent Agency negotiated the deal for North American rights.
Rebecca Kuss at Inkyard has bought, in an exclusive submission, The Not-So-Uniform Life of Holly-Mei by Christina Matula. In this debut middle grade series, Taiwanese Canadian Holly-Mei Jones is uprooted from her normal life in Toronto and must try to find her place in a new world of private school, frenemies, and expectations when her mother gets a high-flying job in Hong Kong. Publication is set for winter 2022; Carrie Pestritto at Laura Dail did the three-book deal for world English rights.
Peter Phillips and Tara Walker at Tundra have acquired, in an exclusive submission, world rights to Pluto Rocket by Paul Gilligan (King of the Mole People). This launch of a new early graphic novel series follows Joe Pidge, a boastful city pigeon who thinks he knows it all, and Pluto, a pink creature who arrives from outer space and needs help fitting in. Publication of the first two books is scheduled for spring and fall of 2023, respectively; Stephen Barr at Writers House represented the author.
Connolly Bottum at Inkyard has bought, in a six-figure preempt, How to Heal a Gryphon by Meg Cannistra. This middle grade series starter follows an Italian girl who is torn between her passion for magically healing animals and her family's desire for her to follow tradition. But when her brother is taken, it seems her powers are all that can save him. Publication is planned for fall 2022; Joanna Volpe at New Leaf Literary & Media brokered the three-book deal for world English rights on behalf of Cake Literary.
Phoebe Yeh at Crown has acquired world rights to Marcus Makes a Movie and its sequel Marcus Makes It Big by comedian, actor, and producer Kevin Hart (l.), co-written with Geoff Rodkey (c.) and illustrated by David Cooper (r.). The humorous middle grade novel pulls from Kevin's experiences as a father of four to celebrate DIY creativity and rising against the odds to bring your dreams to life. Publication for the first book is set for June 2021; Marc Gerald at Europa Content and Josh Getzler at Hannigan Getzler Literary represented Hart and Rodkey, respectively, and Rubin Pfeffer at Rubin Pfeffer Content represented the illustrator.
Deirdre Jones at Little, Brown has bought world rights in a two-book deal to I Will Read to You written by Gideon Sterer (l.) and illustrated by Charles Santoso. This picture book features a monster-loving boy who worries that the vampires, witches, and other ghouls roaming the forest have no one to read them a goodnight story and sets out to help them drift off to sleep himself. Publication is slated for summer 2023; Stephen Barr at Writers House represented the author, and Tamara Shannon at Shannon Associates represented the artist.
Sasha Henriques at Random House has acquired world rights to Rebel Robin by A.R. Capetta, the coming-of-age backstory of Stranger Things fan-favorite character Robin, whose desperate attempt to fit in at Hawkins High conflicts with her greatest secret, one she's only just discovering about herself. Publication is scheduled for June 2021; Sara Crowe at Pippin Properties represented the author.
Mabel Hsu at HarperCollins/Tegen has bought What's Sweeter? by debut picture book author June Tate. Pitched as a cross between Margaret Wise Brown and William Steig, this picture book compares the many sweet moments hidden in our everyday world, including a letter from a faraway friend, the soft spot behind a cat's ear, and the unexpected hue of a sunset. Publication is planned for fall 2022, with a second untitled picture book due in fall 2023; Steven Malk at Writers House did the deal for world rights.
Hilary Van Dusen at Candlewick has acquired The Comet by author-illustrator Ashley Benham-Yazdani (A Green Place to Be), a picture book told from the perspective of Halley's Comet as it passes by Earth every 75 years, witnessing the evolution of human history and the many changes to life on Earth. Publication is slated for spring 2023; Jessica Saint Jean at Jill Grinberg Literary Management negotiated the deal for world rights.
Karen Nagel at Simon & Schuster has bought the world rights to Night Frights by Joe McGee (l.). Mcgee's latest work tells about the strange happenings in a small town and creepy things that only kids see but adults never notice. Teo Skaffa will illustrate; publication is set for fall 2021. Jennifer March Soloway at Andrea Brown Literary represented the author, and Alex Gehringer at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator.
Nan Froman at Groundwood has acquired world rights to Robot, Unicorn, Queen by Climbing Shadows author Shannon Bramer (l.). This collection of whimsical poems for young readers will be illustrated by Irene Luxbacher. Publication is scheduled for fall 2023; the author represented herself, and Emily Van Beek at Folio Jr./Folio Literary Management represented the illustrator.
Ann Rider at HMH has bought world rights to The City Sings Green and Other Poems About Welcoming Wildlife by Erica Silverman (l.), illustrated by Ginnie Hsu, a picture book that blends poetry with nonfiction to celebrate how people are bringing wildlife back to cities. Publication is planned for spring 2023; Karen Grencik at Red Fox Literary represented the author, and Anne Moore Armstrong at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator.
Courtney Code at Abrams has acquired world rights to Sit-in to Stand Up! The Story of Disability Rights Activist Judith Heumann, written by Maryann Cocca-Leffler (l.) (The Power of Yet) and illustrated by Vivien Mildenberger (All in a Drop). This picture book biography features Heumann, a leader of the Disability Rights Movement who, in 1977, led the 504 Sit-In, paving the way for the Americans with Disabilities Act. Publication is set for spring 2022, the 45th anniversary of the signing of section 504; the author represented herself, and Anne Moore-Armstrong at the Bright Agency represented the illustrator.
Zhiqiao Wang at Yeehoo has bought world rights to Piper and Purpa Forever! by Susan Lendroth (l.). This picture book reveals a girl's creative solution to moving forward without leaving an old friend behind. Oliver Feng will illustrate; publication is scheduled for spring 2022 in the U.S. and mainland China. Abigail Samoun at Red Fox Literary represented the author, and the illustrator represented herself.
