Kheryn Callender and Alvina Ling at Little, Brown have acquired Jay Coles's Black Lives Matter-inspired debut Tyler Johnson Was Here, about a boy whose life is torn apart by police brutality when his twin brother goes missing. Publication is scheduled for spring 2018; Lauren Abramo at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret negotiated the deal for world rights.
Melissa Frain at Tor Teen has bought, in a pre-empt, debut author Jodie L. Zdrok’s Spectacle and an untitled second novel. Set in 1887 Paris, Spectacle is a YA historical fantasy that tells the story of a teen reporter who writes a daily newspaper column about the bodies on display in the public morgue – one of the city's biggest attractions, especially now that a serial killer is on the loose. Publication of the first book is slated for 2018; Ginger Clark at Curtis Brown Ltd. negotiated the two-book deal for North American rights.
Ben Rosenthal at HarperCollins's Katherine Tegen Books has acquired two YA novels from Stupid Fast author Geoff Herbach. The first, Hooper, tells the story of Adam Reed, a young Polish immigrant adoptee, who is good at basketball but struggles to fit in until he gets invited to join a select team and finds everything he wants – home, family, love, and friendship – and learns how easy it is to lose it all. Publication is set for winter 2018; Jim McCarthy at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret brokered the deal for world English rights.
Rhoda Belleza at Macmillan/Imprint has bought A Blade So Black, a debut YA fantasy novel by L.L. McKinney, in a two-book deal. Pitched as a retelling of Alice in Wonderland with the butt-kicking of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and with a black teen heroine at the center, Alice is a warrior who battles Nightmares in the dark and terrifying dream realm known as Wonderland. The first book is planned for fall 2018; Melissa Nasson at Rubin Pfeffer Content negotiated the deal for world rights.
Alison Weiss at Sky Pony Press has acquired Jessica Bayliss's debut novel Ten Past Closing, a contemporary YA thriller chronicling the events before and after a hold-up at Café Flores, during which two teens from very different backgrounds are held hostage and explore a relationship that might have been, all while scheming to stay alive. Publication is tentatively scheduled for spring 2018; Uwe Stender of TriadaUS brokered the deal for world rights.
Kate Egan of KCP Loft has bought North American rights to Lynette Noni's YA fantasy, Whisper, in which an imprisoned girl known only as Subject 684 has kept silent through years of testing and torture, alone in the knowledge that her words are infused with power, and she can't control what happens when she opens her mouth. Publication is slated for spring 2018; Victoria Wells Arms of Wells Arms Literary negotiated the deal.
Anamika Bhatnagar at Scholastic has acquired North American rights to two middle grade books by Michael Northrop. The first, Polaris, pitched as The Thing on a 19th-century sailing ship, follows a voyage of discovery that goes horribly wrong, leaving only a handful of ship's boys (two of whom are secretly ship's girls) onboard with a terrifying and virulent new species. Publication is slated for fall 2017. The second, Thin Ice Days, a modern take on The Hunchback of Notre Dame, is a contemporary underdog tale about a middle schooler with a unique condition, and the town that regards him with both cruelty and kindness; it is scheduled for fall 2018. Sara Crowe at Pippin Properties sold North American rights.
Wendy Loggia at Delacorte has bought Jessica Brody's middle grade novel Better You Than Me, a Freaky Friday-like story of two girls – one who is a famous TV star, the other who is her obsessive fan – who switch bodies. It's slated for fall 2018; Jim McCarthy at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management sold world English rights.
Sarah Jane Abbott at S&S/Paula Wiseman Books has acquired world rights to Littler Women: A Modern Retelling by Laura Schaefer, author of the Teashop Girls series. This present-day reimagining of the classic Little Women features a craft or recipe at the end of every chapter. Publication is planned for fall 2017; Stephen Barbara at Inkwell Management did the deal.
Eric Wight at Rodale Kids has bought the first two books in a jointly written chapter book series, Magic Camper, by Courtney Sheinmel (l.) and Bianca Turetsky. In the books, a pair of third grade twins discover a magic camper in their driveway, which will transport them, over time, throughout the United States and beyond. Publication is set for fall 2018; Laura Dail at Laura Dail Literary Agency sold world rights.
Brittany Rubiano at Disney Press has signed Newbery Medalist Matt de la Peña to write an original picture book entitled Miguel and the Grand Harmony, inspired by Disney*Pixar¹s forthcoming film, Coco, to be illustrated by Pixar artist Ana Ramírez. A Spanish edition will also be available. Publication is scheduled for October 2017; Steven Malk at Writers House represented the author; the illustrator was unagented.
Neal Porter and Simon Boughton at Roaring Brook Press have acquired a picture book by Julie Fogliano, A House That Once Was, to be illustrated by Lane Smith. It explores the enchantment and wonder of an abandoned, overgrown house through the eyes of two children who discover it. Publication is set for 2018; Steven Malk at Writers House represented both author and artist in the deal for world rights.
Erin Clarke at Knopf has bought world rights to Andrea J. Loney's Double Bass Blues, illustrated by Rudy Gutierrez, a picture book celebrating music and family in which a black boy shoulders his beloved double bass from his suburban school to his city neighborhood. Publication is slated for spring 2019. Jill Corcoran at Corcoran Literary Agency represented the author and the artist represented himself.
Katherine Harrison at Knopf has signed world rights to Take Your Octopus to School Day, a picture book by Audrey Vernick (l.) and illustrated by Diana Schoenbrun. It's scheduled for fall 2018; Erin Murphy at Erin Murphy Literary Agency represented the author and Lara Perkins of Andrea Brown Literary Agency represented the illustrator.
Tom Peterson at the Creative Company has acquired world rights to Michael J. Rosen's The Greatest Table, a poem that envisions a world in which no one is allowed to go hungry because everyone shares in the sustainable bounty of the earth. Becca Stadtlander will illustrate; publication is slated for fall 2018. The author was unagented, and Anne Moore Armstrong of Bright USA represented the illustrator.
