W.W. Norton has acquired the upcoming biography of Philip Roth by Blake Bailey, tentatively titled Philip Roth: The Biography. Norton senior editor Matt Weiland acquired North American rights at auction, with David McCormick of McCormick & Williams representing Bailey.
Roth and Bailey have signed a collaboration agreement that guarantees Bailey unrestricted access to materials including Roth’s complete archives, personal papers, taped interviews, and unpublished writings. Roth has also granted the author extensive interviews.
Bailey is the author of several books, including the 2009 NBCC and Francis Parkman Prize-winning Cheever: A Life, which was a New York Times Notable Book of the year; A Tragic Honesty: The Life and Work of Richard Yates, a finalist for the 2003 National Book Critics Circle Award; and Farther & Wilder: The Lost Weekends and Literary Dreams of Charles Jackson, to be published by Knopf in 2013.
Blake Bailey’s memoir, The Splendid Things We Planned, was also acquired recently by Weiland and will be published by Norton in 2014. A publication date for the Roth biography has yet to be set.
