Jocelyn Davies at HarperTeen has acquired Edgar Award finalist Elle Cosimano's YA fantasy, When We Wake, about a group of teens who, on the brink of death, are turned into immortal Seasons. Trapped in a vicious cycle of killing each other year after year, Winter and Spring—Jack and Fleur—fall in love, and must find a way to unite against nature and reclaim their free will. Publication is slated for fall 2019; Sarah Davies at Greenhouse Literary negotiated the two-book deal for North American rights.
Nikki Garcia at Little, Brown has bought Nandini Bajpai's contemporary YA novel A Match Made in Mehendi. The book follows an Indian-American teen girl, who comes from a long line of matchmakers, and decides to try to gain popularity in high school using her family's matchmaking traditions to create a dating app. Publication is scheduled for spring 2019; Victoria Marini at Irene Goodman Agency brokered the deal for world English rights on behalf of CAKE Literary.
Sarah Barley at Flatiron has acquired, at auction, debut author Gita Trelease's Enchantée, a YA historical fantasy pitched as Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell meets Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette. Set in Paris in 1789, the novel tells the story of the impoverished Camille, who uses magic to impersonate an aristocrat at the glittering Palace of Versailles as her own political awakening forces her to choose sides in the French Revolution. Publication is planned for winter 2019; Molly Ker Hawn at the Bent Agency did the three-book deal for North American rights.
Sara Sargent at HarperCollins has bought, in an exclusive submission, 18-year-old Instagram poet Caroline Kaufman's Light Filters In. Pitched as Rupi Kaur's Milk & Honey for young adults, the poetry collection explores coming-of-age themes such as love, coping with depression, and trying to fit in. Publication is set for May 2018; Penny Moore and Andrea Barzvi at Empire Literary negotiated the deal for world rights.
Liz Kossnar at Simon & Schuster has bought, at auction, North American rights to 19-year-old Nadya Okamoto's nonfiction manifesto on the youth menstrual movement, Power to the Period. Okamoto is the founder and executive director of PERIOD. The Menstrual Movement, and a current sophomore at Harvard. The book will show how young people can change the conversation around periods to support gender equality, ending poverty, intersectional feminism, and the environment. Publication is slated for fall 2018; Lindsay Edgecombe and Kerry Sparks at Levine Greenberg Rostan brokered the deal.
Wendy Loggia at Delacorte has acquired, in a pre-empt, Nick Courage's Feather Island, a middle grade novel about a boy in San Juan and a girl in New Orleans whose lives will change forever as a major hurricane rages across the southern U.S. and draws the children together. Publication is scheduled for summer 2019; Rachel Ekstrom at Irene Goodman handled the deal for North American rights.
Hilary Van Dusen at Candlewick has bought North American rights to Helen Cooper's illustrated debut novel, Hippo at the End of the Hall, an adventure story by the Kate Greenaway award-winning author-illustrator of Pumpkin Soup. Publication is set for fall 2019; Bronwen Bennie at David Fickling Books negotiated the deal on behalf of the author.
Alice Jonaitis at Random House/Beginner Books has acquired world, all-language rights for author, humorist, and composer-lyricist Christopher Cerf's A Skunk in My Bunk!. The early reader uses rhyming text to teach the basics of word construction. Publication is planned for summer 2019; the deal was unagented.
Neal Porter at Holiday House has bought, in a seven-imprint auction, Small in the City, award-winning illustrator of Town Is by the Sea Sydney Smith's first picture book as both author and illustrator. This is one of Porter's first acquisitions for his new imprint at Holiday House. The picture book explores what it means to get lost in the city, to travel the wrong path, and to find oneself caught in the weather—ultimately finding the way back home. Publication is slated for fall 2019; Emily Van Beek at Folio Literary Management sold world rights, excluding Canada, in a two-book deal. Sheila Barry and Nan Froman acquired Canadian rights for Groundwood Books.
Virginia Duncan at Greenwillow has acquired, at auction, debut author-illustrator Yvonne Ivinson's Fox Box Tail Sail, the story of a fox who takes a box out on the open sea. Publication is scheduled for spring/summer 2019; Tracy Marchini at BookEnds did the three-book deal for world English rights.
Justin Chanda at Simon & Schuster has bought Plum, the debut picture book by Sean Hayes (l.), Emmy Award–winning actor and star of Will & Grace. The book is co-written by Hayes's husband, composer and producer Scott Icenogle. Plum, a prequel story to The Nutcracker, details how the Sugar Plum Fairy received her wings. Picked on by the other children at the orphanage, Plum never stays glum, because she has the kindest and bravest heart. When a blizzard threatens to ruin Christmas, Plum figures out a way to save the day. Debut picture book artist Robin Thompson will illustrate; publication is set for November 2018. Andy McNichol at William Morris Endeavor Entertainment brokered the deal for North American rights.
Stephanie Pitts at Putnam has acquired, at auction, the picture book Five Minutes Is a Lot of Time (No It's Not) (Yes, It Is)by Liz Garton Scanlon (l.) and Audrey Vernick, illustrated by Olivier Tallec, which asks readers to consider: how long, really, is five minutes? (Hint: It depends on whether you're doing something you love or something you dread.) Publication is planned for fall 2019, with a second untitled picture book to follow. Erin Murphy at Erin Murphy Literary Agency represented the authors, and Kirsten Hall at Catbird Productions represented the illustrator in the deal for world rights.
Celia Lee at Scholastic/Orchard has bought world rights to Corey Rosen Schwartz (l.) and Rebecca Gomez's Two Tough Trucks and a sequel, a picture book series in rhyme about two unlikely truck friends. Hilary Leung (r.) will illustrate; publication for the first book is slated for 2019. Kendra Marcus at Book Stop Literary represented the authors, and the illustrator represented himself.
Liz Bicknell at Candlewick has acquired, at auction, a picture book by Stars author Mary Lyn Ray (l.), The House of Grass and Sky. The book tells the story of a house in the country that yearns for the right family to make it their home. Windows illustrator E.B. Goodale will provide the art; publication is scheduled for spring 2021. Rick Margolis at Rising Bear Literary represented the author, and Lori Kilkelly at Rodeen Literary represented the illustrator.
Cheryl Klein at Lee & Low is editing Roberto Peñas's (l.) Pedro's Yo-Yos: How a Filipino Immigrant Came to America and Changed the World of Toys, a picture book biography of Pedro Flores, who popularized the yo-yo in the United States. Peñas won the 2016 Lee & Low New Voices Award for the manuscript, which will be his debut. Carl Angel will illustrate; publication is planned for spring 2019. Both the author and illustrator represented themselves.
Christy Ottaviano at Macmillan/Ottaviano has bought world rights to Sarah Glenn-Marsh's Alice Across America: The Story of the First All-Girl American Road Trip, a nonfiction picture book about Alice Ramsey, the first woman to drive a car cross-country, in 1909. Gilbert Ford will illustrate; the book is set for 2020. Christa Heschke at McIntosh and Otis represented the author, and the illustrator was unagented.
