Following last week’s intense gossip among agents that former Simon & Schuster publisher David Rosenthal has been negotiating to set up an imprint at Penguin, Crain’s ran a short item memorializing the rumor. The parties are not commenting.Crain’s At the Simon & Schuster imprint, Michael Szczerban has been promoted to associate editor. Former President George Bush will appear on the Oprah Winfrey Show on November 9, the release date for his book DECISION POINTS. Steven Spielberg is going to direct the film version of Daniel H. Wilson’s forthcoming novel ROBOPOCALYPSE, with photography scheduled to begin in January 2012 for theatrical […]
New Releases/Forthcoming
100 Years Later, A Twain Bestseller
The first volume of Mark Twain’s posthumous autobiography from the University of California Press jumped to the top of bestseller lists at Amazon (currently No. 2) and Barnes & Noble (No. 3) yesterday. It has an official publication date of November 15, but the book (and ebook) was unveiled at a Mark Twain festival in Calavaras County, CA last Friday and is available now. Weekend publicity included a feature in the Philadelphia Inquirer and a segment on CBS Sunday Morning.Calavaras County coverage
Awards, People, Etc.
The new Barnes & Noble Recommends trade paperback selections are Lisa Genova’s Still Alice and Mary Karr’s Lit: A Memoir. The Booker Prize will be awarded this evening in London. Ladbrokes had suspended betting last week after 50 percent more money was wagered on a single title–Tom McCarthy’s C–on Wednesday than had been bet in total since the longlist was announced in July. Most illuminating, though, was the revelation that for all the attention the Booker betting draws, Ladbrokes took just 10,000 pounds of wagers up until Wednesday, when another 15,000 pounds was bet on McCarthy alone. Traditionally the favorite […]
The Non-Story that Won’t Stop: Larsson’s Unpublished Book
Publishers and fans of Stieg Larsson won’t let go of the idea that a nearly-finished manuscript in the bestselling Millennium series might be published some day, even though those in a position to control its fate keep saying it won’t. The latest installment was a hyped CBS Sunday Morning interview with the late Larsson’s father Erland and brother Joakim, who control the author’s estate (over the continuing objections of Larsson’s partner, Eve Gabrielsson. But “the Larssons say they won’t publish the book even if it surfaces.” Which is what Publishers Lunch reported in June 2009, when Joakim Larsson told us […]
1.5 Million Copy First Printing for Bush Memoir
Crown has set a 1.5 million-copy first printing for George W. Bush’s memoir Decision Points, due out on November 9. There will also be an enhanced e-book edition featuring video highlights of Bush’s presidency, photographs not included in the hardcover book and personal correspondence.AP
Marcus Aligns with Open Road; Twilight Illustrated Guide for April, 2011; and More
Former president of Scholastic’s children’s book publishing and consultant Barbara Marcus has been working with Open Road as an adviser for children’s publishing and is in Frankfurt with the Open Road team. She “will help spearhead” their entrance into the children’s market as well as advise on international business development and general strategic issues. Her first acquisition is ebook editions of The Boxcar Children, the classic series that comprises 123 titles. The first 19 will be available for this Christmas; the balance of the line will come to market during 2011. Marcus says in the announcement, “I believe that Open […]