Adult Newsletter: September 2024

Up And Coming For Submission

FICTION

The first time Walter confronted the Nightmare was as a child during the Atlanta Race Massacre, and as Jim Crow tightened its grip, there wasn’t a day that went by without seeing it. It’s the Nightmare that’s driven Walter to the NAACP in New York, replying to an ad for light-skinned Black men to help with a special assignment. Walter isn’t proud of passing—his father always told him passing was a sin—but wouldn’t this be a good use of his blue eyes and fair skin? So, Walter becomes a spy for the NAACP, investigating lynchings by impersonating the Nightmare, all while being alternately haunted and helped by the angry ghost of his dead friend. But rising in tandem with the NAACP is a rebirthed KKK, determined to enforce a racial hierarchy and brazen enough to form a chapter in New York, attracting the notice of Sam Cahill, Walter’s original Nightmare. Sam is eager to belong, desperate to matter, and being the one person who recognizes Walter for who he really is just might make him worth something. AMERICAN NIGHTMARE is loosely based on the real-life Walter White, who passed as a white man to help change the country’s attitude toward lynching. What he did in secret for the NAACP—and for his nation—would change the course of history. AMERICAN NIGHTMARE is children’s and YA author Kelly McWilliams’s first novel for adults, a grounded historical novel with elements of horror, for fans of Brit Bennett and Tananarive Due. (Please note, Michael Bourret is the agent for this project.)

Elswyth Elderwood is a scholar of magic in a world of socialites. Her sister, Persephone, has always been the charming one in the family—a graceful debutante who moved to London seeking a marriage that would save their family from destitution. But Persephone has been murdered, leaving Elswyth as the last scion of their house. She is forced to leave the study of botanical magic and marry—but secretly vows to discover her sister’s murderer. Elswyth is thrust into a London fueled by floromancy: hedge witches sprout nightshade from their fingertips, high ladies weave evening gowns from wildflowers… and a serial killer called the Reaper is transforming his victims into plant-human hybrids. When clues reveal the Reaper may be a powerful nobleman, Elswyth’s hunt for her sister’s killer and her hunt for a husband become one and the same. But as high lords begin to seek her hand, she is drawn to a bastard-born archaeologist named Silas Blackthorn—until she learns that Silas has dark secrets of his own. Elswyth must determine friend from foe and lover from liar or suffer the same fate as her sister. Thomas Kent West’s utterly beguiling novel, CITY OF IRON AND IVY is a work of historical fantasy that combines the dark academia and anti-colonial themes of R.F. Kuang’s Babel with the glamour and intrigue of Bridgerton. Elswyth’s alternate London will also appeal to readers of historical fantasy such as Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries. A startlingly rich, entirely thrilling debut that is impossible to put down, West’s work delights. (Please note, Jim McCarthy is the agent for this project.)

Toby arrives for a holiday at the Immervale Inn. where time is nonlinear. One day, he’ll wake up on June 4th; the next day is February 23rd; the next November 15th; and so on. He and the other hotel guests compete to guess the true date based on seasonal clues. But the much bigger attraction in Immervale is the Lovers—a woman and man who haunt the town, appearing at different ages on different days. Toby and the other guests track them, like birdwatchers tracking a rare species. Then the innkeeper reveals terrible news: the town is forcing her to give up the Inn. Distraught, Toby launches a quest to not only find the Lovers, but their wedding—a legendary event that may or may not have ever happened. Why does this matter? Because real-world stakes underpin this fantasy world—revealed bit by bit, clue by clue—until it's almost too late. ORDINARY TIME begins as cozy fiction....and ends as an existential punch to the heart. Award-winning sci-fi and fantasy novelist Monica Byrne’s extraordinary, fabulist novel turns genre on its head—slowly dissolving our assumptions about narrative itself. In the vein of Piranesi by Susanna Clarke and The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, it is deeply rooted in the author’s experience growing up Catholic in the shadow of Three Mile Island, the site of the worst nuclear disaster in U.S. history. It is a puzzle box of a novel that unfolds and then ultimately, emotionally, implodes. A breathtaking feat of imagination and a heartbreaking reckoning with the past, Byrne’s work demands attention. (Please note, Jim McCarthy is the agent for this project.)

In the mid-20th century, several graduates of a storied HBCU churn with ambition in a world that undermines and underestimates them.  Frankie Williams is special assistant to Thurgood Marshall, arguing before the Supreme Court, and rising in the ranks to work alongside Sargent Shriver to found the Peace Corps and eventually become the US Ambassador to Ghana.  Meanwhile, Charlie Day, his college roommate, expatriates to Accra, founds the Gold Coast Insurance Company and insures the newly Africanized civil service and subsequently, the nation’s military, railroads and airlines. What draws them both to Accra is their connection to Lincoln classmate, Kwame Nkrumah, a Gold Coast nationalist who would become the country’s first Prime Minister.  When Nkrumah’s rule turns increasingly authoritarian, their lives shift. Confronting the constant negotiations black men in prominent positions were forced to make between their principles and their ambitions, both men must grapple with the imperfect outcome of their liberatory dreams. Based on the real graduates of the first college-degree granting HBCU—including the author’s grandfather, Robert T. Freeman, Jr., who appears in the novel as Charlie Day—Eva Freeman’s THE BLOOD OF BOTH is riveting bookclub fiction at its finest, a historical novel inspired by the stories her grandfather told her of his time among the world-shaping elite. (Please note, Lauren Abramo is the agent for this project.) 

George is shocked when his estranged older sister, Eleanor—mayor of Charm Valley—asks him to return home to investigate the disappearance of the town’s beloved Hag.  Without their most powerful witch, Charm Valley will no longer be safe from the mercurial gods that lurk around its edges. But George’s magic has always been weak—suitable for finding a lost trinket under a dresser or a missing cat. Less witch, more glitch. George is teamed up with town reeve Henry, who is also the boy he never quite got over no matter how far he fled in two decades. With help from their childhood partner in crime Tish, they will have to solve a series of riddles the Hag left behind in hopes of saving their home from powers that are already starting to destroy it. Forced together after two decades, George and Henry will also have to decode what’s really been between them all these years. Jes Battis’ queer, neurodiverse CHARM VALLEY is a cozy fantasy about family, love, and finding your place—while trying to track down the town matriarch whose disappearance might just lead to the end of life as we know it. The result is Schitt’s Creek meets Charmed with a pinch of queer drama. A professor of literature and queer/trans studies, Battis is the author of The Winter Knight, among other novels, which was long-listed for Canada Reads 2024 and won silver at the Indie Foreword and Independent Publisher awards. (Please note, Lauren Abramo is the agent for this project.)

It’s the summer of 1973, and Will Powers has a normal life—at least on the surface. He loves shooting baskets, joking around with his preternaturally confident friend Mango, and playing blues songs on his second-hand steel guitar. Always in the back of his mind, though, is a desperate need to discover what really happened to his parents. Famed archaeologists, they disappeared in Egypt when Will was five years old, leaving him with unresolved questions and a preoccupation with all things ancient Egypt. Will realizes he may be tantalizingly close to answers when a down-on-its-luck circus comes to town, and a cryptic interaction with the ringleader hints that the circus may be connected with the fate of his parents. It will take a summer of bizarre adventures—from crafting the perfect date at the Grain ‘n Feed, to taking a backbreaking job on the tie gang of a failing railroad, to finally infiltrating the circus and confronting its members—for Will to wind his way towards the truth. It won’t come easy, though. Ultimately, he will need to decide once and for all whether to get to the bottom the mystery, no matter the cost, or to finally learn how to let go. Written by father-daughter team Robert G. Best and Jessica Mary Best, THE BOY KING AND HIS ORCHESTRA balances the heartfelt, wistful approach of Amor Towles’s The Lincoln Highway with the quirky, sharply realized characters of a Coen brothers movie to create a coming-of-age story that is by turns sincere, intriguing, and laugh-out-loud funny. (Please note, Michaela Whatnall is the agent for this project.)

1764: Maria Anna Mozart, the brilliant but overshadowed elder sister of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, struggles against the male-centric music society of 18th-century Europe. 1964: Vivian West, a music historian fleeing a troubled past, is determined to discover Maria Anna’s lost compositions and bring the composer’s legacy to light. 2025: Feeling trapped by her marriage, motherhood, and career, Sunday Knight travels to Austria with her two children and her mother. Her mission is twofold: to help her ailing grandmother uncover the long-buried secrets of the Mozart family and to unravel the hidden truths of her own past. As Sunday delves into Maria Anna’s old love letters, she discovers cryptic clues that reveal a profound connection between her own marital struggles and those of the forgotten composer. Separated by centuries, three women face heart-wrenching trials and dreams: Maria Anna suffers the loss of her true love and fights to be recognized in a musical world dominated by men; Vivian endures jail time and amasses secrets as she strives to bring justice to women's music history; and Sunday grapples with a strained marriage while chasing her own musical ambitions. UNSUNG by Elizabeth Martins explores the intricate dynamics of marriage, motherhood, and self-identity, serving as a powerful reminder that every woman’s life is a symphony, waiting to be heard. (Please note, Kendall Berdinsky is the agent for this project.)

Everyone is a villain to someone, and I am happy to be a villain to men. Sentenced to death for the murder of eight men, serial killer Alice Williams refuses to file an appeal. Her lawyer, Caruso, desperately wants to know why. But the ‘why’ goes back to her first murder and what made a small-town all-American girl snap. Two decades before her arrest, Alice Williams is on track to graduate college as valedictorian, but when she’s roofied at her boyfriend’s fraternity and witnesses a local girl disappear, Alice’s trust in the system cracks. The police don’t believe her, her boyfriend is lying, and her obsession with the missing girl drives away everyone she loves. But this isn’t the first disappearance Alice has gotten involved in, nor will it be the last. As Alice hurtles towards her first kill, she must face her deteriorating mental state, a fracturing relationship with her best friend, and a threat she never saw coming. After all, the line between an independent woman and a madwoman is thin, and Alice might just cross it. HOW GIRLS DISAPPEAR by Sarah Glenroe is a fast-paced, dual-timeline debut, perfect for fans of feminist psychological thrillers like those of Jessica Knoll and Layne Fargo. (Please note, Kendall Berdinsky is the agent for this project.)

NON-FICTION

After losing her job during the Great Recession, Hollywood executive Kee Kee Buckley tackled one of life’s most profound existential questions: what happens when you have a plan, and that plan goes to shit? Her soulmate had just resurfaced—the one who married and had kids with the rebound girl—further rubbing salt in the wound of her spectacular life failure. No job; no income; no boyfriend; no children; no safety net. She still had her dog. Thank GOD she had her dog. And she had her getaway vehicle. So, in the time-honored tradition of people running away from their crumbling lives, she got in her car, Princess Leia the Prius, with her dog, Yoda, and drove away. SEEKING SHAMA: ME. MY DOG. LESSONS OF THE ROAD. is a transformative and moving personal narrative about searching for shama—a Sanskrit word that means inner peace. Her many adventures during five months on the road—including being adopted by a world-renowned curandera in Arkansas; finding (and losing) love in Texas; spending time with a community of octogenarian Western Swing Hall of Famers in a remote Arizona RV park; and spending a week in Iowa’s iconic American Gothic House with the woman known worldwide as Ms. American Pie—taught her the secret to embracing inner peace. 

For thousands of years, humans across cultures have adorned their ears with jewelry in some way—a form of adornment that often compels people to puncture and modify their body. A CULTURAL HISTORY OF EARRINGS explores how the accessory has been used globally throughout history to signify social status, ethnic identity, sexual availability, and so much more. Fashion history professor Laura Jourdan Palmer will take readers on a deeply researched worldwide tour: unearthing the findings of an archaeological dig in modern-day Turkey where the first known ear adornments have been identified, tracing the development of punk communities in 20th century England that created a symbol of resistance and rebellion by sliding safety pins through their earlobes, and chatting with contemporary jewelry designers who have made the nameplate gold hoop an icon of the Latina look. This book will uncover the secret histories of particular earrings surrounded by cultural mystique, like the pearl earring in Vermeer's famed painting which may have been made of tin. As it reveals the ways that earrings have allowed people to navigate both individual identity and cultural belonging, A CULTURAL HISTORY OF EARRINGS will show how this particular accessory can be read as a throughline in the story of our shared humanity.     

Any market can be beaten, and the multibillion-dollar online sports betting industry is no exception. Ethan Markowitz discovered this as a college senior, when he and five other sports-obsessed, mathematically gifted friends pioneered a betting strategy that turned a few thousand dollars into seven figures. Sound like a fairytale? The real story is much more complicated, and it’s a story the sports betting industry hopes you never read. Because the industry’s best kept secret is this: it’s an unfair game ruled by dictatorial authority. Bet big, and sportsbooks grant promotions and access to exclusive parties to keep you addicted to their platforms. But win enough money with enough consistency, and just like Ethan and his friends, you’ll be banned or limited without explanation. In TAKE THE UNDER, Jordan Klein explores the truth behind one of the world’s fastest growing industries, the strategies and sacrifices it takes to win big, and the real cost consumers are paying to play. How did six college students crack the code to this complex marketplace? Could their friendships survive when hundreds of thousands of dollars were at stake every week, all while balancing fraternity formals, first loves, and economics finals? And how can the industry still be allowed to ensnare its most vulnerable customers in a cycle of addiction, while locking out its most successful participants? The true societal costs of online sports betting are about to be realized and TAKE THE UNDER sounds the alarm. 

A deafening explosion vibrated through newspaper reporter Jeremy Redmon just after he was handed his dish in the U.S. military mess tent in Mosul, Iraq. His body clenched. Spinning around, Redmon spotted a huge fireball. He had just narrowly survived the single deadliest attack on an American military installation during the war, a suicide bombing that killed 22 people. Redmon volunteered to cover the war partly to learn about his father, a decorated Vietnam War veteran who led intelligence-gathering efforts against the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Redmon hoped to understand how war had changed his father and why he decided to take his own life. It struck him that his father’s suicide had propelled him to the very spot where he would witness another suicide, one that would nearly kill him. In the following months, Redmon’s harrowing experiences in Iraq would help him see his father, war, and resilience in new ways. But he knew his odyssey would not be complete until he chased his father’s ghost to Hanoi and reckoned with what he did during the Vietnam War. Written cinematically and threaded with humor, TELL THE KIDS I LOVE THEM is a tragicomic narrative about fathers and sons; love and loss; and war and lacrosse. An award-winning journalist, Redmon writes for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and teaches at Missouri University’s Journalism School.

There’s a story behind virtually every tattoo you’ll see today at the grocery store, the gym, and on Zoom. These images that signal triumph, loss, joy or attachment to a beloved person or place are biographies we wear on our skin. At least a third of Americans now communicate something about who they are through a picture embedded in ink. This explosion of tattoos spans all ages, races, genders, and political affiliations. It fuels an industry projected to reach $4 billion by 2030. TATTOOS: A MODERN CULTURAL HISTORY is the first book to explain, in detail, what’s going on and why. Veteran public radio reporter Martha Bebinger, winner of four national awards this year alone, talks to the cultural icons who helped launch the current movement as well as the doctors, politicians, board chairs, and teachers proudly rolling up their sleeves to show tattoos they used to hide. Bebinger spends time with chaplains using tattoos to guide end of life conversations, women tattooing in salons inspired by Disney movies, and body modification artists melding tattoos, piercings, and silicone implants in whole body designs. Bebinger dips into tattoo history going back to Otzi in 3250 B.C., but mainly focuses on the surge in tattooing that started 30 years ago in the U.S. and that is still building today. TATTOOS: A MODERN CULTURAL HISTORY deciphers the latest research about what’s in tattoo ink, where it ends up in the body, and why that matters - whether someone keeps their tattoo for a lifetime, has it removed or covered up. Americans are just beginning to grasp the ways tattoos are transforming our sense of who we are, and the way they’re shaping our world.

After the fall of North Africa, Churchill announced, “This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” Japan’s defeat at Midway and the German defeats in North Africa and Stalingrad ensured that the Axis Powers would not win the war, but the titanic battles of June 1944 guaranteed their downfall. After three years of being battered by relentless Axis assaults, the fully mobilized Allied armies were, at last, ready to launch a series of offensives that broke the back of enemy forces in every theater of the war. JUNE 1944 by Jim Lacey tells the incredible story of the shattering of Germany’s formidable Gothic Line and the American march into Rome. Only a day later and a thousand miles to the north, a massive Anglo-American force was hurled upon the beaches of Normandy, ripping open the Atlantic Wall and starting the march toward Germany. It was barely a week later when American forces opened the greatest battle of the Pacific War by seizing Saipan, Tinian, and Guam, while breaking the back of the Imperial Navy. In the same month, in  Operation Bagration, the Red Army, set on revenge, launched the largest offensive of the war. In just three weeks, the relentless Russian steamroller shattered Germany’s Army Group Center, wiping out as many German divisions as the Allies were facing at Normandy.  A gripping historical page turner JUNE 1944 will be a great addition to WWII collections.

Northern Elephant Seals are deep divers, spending most of their lives foraging for fish at 1,000 feet and deeper. These two-ton seals surprised California’s Central Coast residents when they came ashore at Piedras Blancas, and onto Scenic Highway 1, in the 1990s; the seals were rebounding from being hunted nearly to extinction in the 20th century. DEEP DIVERS: ELEPHANT SEALS AND THEIR WORLD DEEP BELOW takes the reader onto the beach and into the deep-sea habitat where these mammals spend nearly 90 percent of their lives. The Piedras Blancas rookery is now a tourist attraction, protecting both seals and visitors. A million people annually view this herd of hundreds of huge wild animals. More follow them on a live webcam. It’s a unique wildlife viewing place that is free to all, without disrupting the seals’ natural cycle. But what visitors see from the bluff boardwalk reveals only a sliver of the seals’ lives. As natural as it is for pups to be born and bulls to battle for dominance, their fate and ours are inextricably entwined. Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, Floating Wind Turbine projects, rocket launches, carbon sequestration, and commercial fishing of the three-inch fish of the Ocean Twilight Zone, female elephant seals’ main source of food, are among the existential threats to the seals. Christine Heinrich’s DEEP DIVERS is an enlightening exploration of these remarkable creatures and the rapidly changing environment they inhabit.  

On a November afternoon in 1928, the SS Vestris—freshly inspected and full of passengers, crew, and cargo—set out from Hoboken, New Jersey, for the Caribbean en route to Montevideo, Uruguay. Two days later, the ship lay at the bottom of the ocean about 250 miles east of Virginia, the victim of poor maintenance, sloppy loading, a strong autumn storm and a captain’s hubris. In A MOST AVOIDABLE TRAGEDY: THE SINKING OF THE SS VESTRIS, Scott Martelle recreates one of the biggest sea tragedies of its time, in which 111 people perished – including all the children and nearly all the female passengers, while quickly arriving ships managed to pluck 215 survivors from the seas and storm-battered lifeboats. Had the Vestris been better designed, the crew more attentive to securing her hatches, and the cargo properly lashed down, the ship likely would not have sunk. And the deaths could have been averted had seasoned Captain William J. Carey issued a mayday call when the Vestris first began foundering. But he delayed more than 12 hours until the ship was soon to sink with rescuers still five hours away. Relying on first-person accounts from survivors, transcripts from three formal inquiries—two in the United States and one in Great Britain—and lawsuits, Martelle, a former Los Angeles Times staff writer and author of seven books of nonfiction, recreates this tragic tale of the sea in gripping detail. 

Have you ever been to a boring Passover seder? If you respond, “Is there any other kind?” then you need THE DAYENU HAGGADAH by one of America’s leading rabbinic voices, and award-winning writer, Rabbi Robert Levine, and rabbinical student Rebecca Thau. This 40-minute experience will make you think, feel, and hope. Dayenu, the popular seder song, emphasizes gratitude. Levine and Thau take this central Passover text and make it into a call to action. In Hebrew, Dayenu means “it would have been enough if God had taken us out of Egypt.” However, we were given many more gifts, including the ability to enter a covenant with God that outlines our mutual responsibilities to bring justice and dignity to the world. In THE DAYENU HAGGADAH, you will sing the traditional Four Questions, and will find four new, provocative questions to inspire the best discussions; tell the dramatic Passover story in skit form that will engage guests of every age; finally stop labelling kids as “wicked” or “simple” and instead meet four resilient kids who overcame hardship; enjoy activities to engage children while you delight in debate; and meet biblical and modern heroes who will move you to ask, “Is there something I can do to make a difference today?” The book is sure to become a holiday classic.

Psychotherapist Amy Morin first introduced us to the game-changing concepts of mental strength back in 2013 with "13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do." Fast forward to today: six books, over a million copies sold, and now she's ready to focus her work on the business world. Organizations are facing a serious challenge—employees are buckling under stress and burning out. They’re struggling to regulate their emotions, bounce back from failures, and adapt to change. MENTAL STRENGTH is a much-needed resource that is packed with 50 science-backed tools designed to give employees the emotional resilience they desperately need. Whether it's calming pre-presentation jitters, managing an overwhelming workload, or setting boundaries with co-workers, these fast-acting skills are laid out like a menu that employees can apply any time they need to empower themselves. Packed with compelling stories, and cutting-edge research, MENTAL STRENGTH will be the essential handbook for professionals seeking strategies to enhance mental resilience and excel in their careers. Amy Morin's TEDx talk, "The Secret of Becoming Mentally Strong," has been viewed 24 million times. Her books have been translated into 45 languages, and her articles reach over 2 million readers monthly through outlets like Psychology Today, CNBC, and Business Insider. She's one of the top-booked female corporate speakers, training companies like Google, Under Armour, Northwestern Mutual, Crowdstrike, and Johnson & Johnson in mental strength. She hosts the popular Mentally Stronger podcast and has made appearances on Tamron Hall Show, Good Morning America, and Inside Edition. (Please note, Stacey Glick is the agent for this project.)

Grounded by grief, Lia Buffa De Feo soars with resilience as she interweaves her path to parenthood with the complex history of women's reproductive rights—inspiring hope and determination. De Feo's world was shattered when medical missteps led to a ruptured uterus and the stillbirth of her son. Surrogacy was the only path forward for Lia and her husband. Unbelievably, they faced another devastating blow just 15 months later with their surrogate when a rare heart condition took the life of their just-born daughter. Grief-stricken, Lia meets a spiritual healer who helps her find solace in appreciating the everyday. She processes her pain by rediscovering her love of photography. Through the camera lens, Lia finds beauty in moments that once passed unnoticed. A deeper connection to creativity and a newfound belief in synchronicity allows her to simultaneously embrace life and process her grief. In this narrative nonfiction, De Feo expertly weaves her experiences with historical perspectives. From ancient beliefs about "wandering wombs" to modern battles for equitable healthcare, her story becomes a powerful prism to examine society's complex relationship with women and their bodies. Transformed, she emerges from her personal trauma as a fierce advocate, engaging with political leaders, influencing public policy, and contributing to national media discussions. Featuring insights from medical experts, historical figures, and contemporary academics, FLY BRAVELY: A MOTHER’S JOURNEY THROUGH LOSS, LOVE AND LEGISLATION is a documentary account which compels readers to consider the interplay of individual experiences, societal expectations, and public policy in the ongoing battle over women’s reproductive rights. (Please note, Stacey Glick is the agent for this project.)

In the spring of 2024, a single Arabic word shook college campuses across the United States, as student demonstrators protesting Israel’s assault on Gaza chanted “intifada.” In response, university administrators were hauled before Congress to explain the term, and opinion pages filled up with interpretations. This controversy was merely the latest American run-in with Arabic, a language that has been embraced, exploited, and vilified at various political turning points. In A BROKEN PLURAL: AMERICA’S TWO-CENTURY ENCOUNTER WITH THE ARABIC LANGUAGE, Kaitlyn Hashem reevaluates the past two hundred years of American politics and foreign policy through a linguistic prism, telling the story of Arabic in the United States through the lives of American speakers, teachers, and students of the language in the context of the political upheavals that have shaped their identities and careers. Running from the mid-nineteenth century to the present, the book features a diverse cast of characters including ambitious American missionaries and diplomats, Arab American literary luminaries and activists, preeminent professors of Middle East Studies, and Arab immigrants recruited to work as translators in the aftermath of 9/11. Hashem, a journalist and first-generation Syrian American who learned Arabic as an adult, was a student at Columbia Journalism School during the 2024 protests. Blending memoir and narrative history alongside an exploration of the structures and vocabulary of the Arabic language, A BROKEN PLURAL asks what it means to speak Arabic in America and how that meaning has evolved as the country has become ever-more entangled in the Arab world. (Please note, Jessica Papin is the agent for this project.)

It’s a turbulent time in global affairs. An environmental crisis, a refugee crisis. War, a new arms race. Political polarization, a global mental health pandemic. EVERYDAY AMBASSADOR argues that we are on the cusp of an exciting new world order, where leadership is not just in the hands of few but of all.  Law professor and anthropologist Annelise Riles argues that what the world needs now is many more diplomats--connectors, translators, interpretors, across political and cultural differences, between science and religion, between the arts and the technology world, even between teams within a single company. Whether it's mediating a school board dispute, deescalating an altercation in the grocery check out line, or finding a way to bring nations together to address CO2 reductions, Riles shows that the challenges and the skills required are not that different. Riles synthesizes decades of legal and ethnographic research in settings from central banks to the United Nations, and from NGOs to technology companies, into seven "moves" that empower anyone to be a great diplomat right from where you are.   Stories of Everyday Ambassadors from all walks of life--from a Nobel Peace Prize winner to a back office banker, from an archbishop to a feminist blogger, show how to put these moves into practice to build a more peaceful and just world. Annelise Riles is Professor of Law at Northwestern University. She received the Maier Prize for lifetime academic achievement from the Humboldt Foundation and was knighted by the French government for her contributions to diplomacy. She serves as Peace Correspondent for the City of Nagasaki. (Please note, Jessica Papin is the agent for this project.)

In a state sliding toward the extreme, Idaho’s first out LGBTQ lawmaker battled for love and equality. For over 30 years, Cole (Nicole) LeFavour worked in social justice movements in the American West. After  serving as a State Senator and resisting the Idaho Legislature silencing them, LeFavour left the Capitol and became an organizer and leader of a queer movement of “good trouble” called “Add the Words.” Now in LOVE AND PROTEST: A True Story of Queer Resistance and Good Trouble in Red America, LeFavour takes us on a journey through gender, power, and civil disobedience, from political activism in Berkeley to breaking into a site to successfully end nuclear weapons testing to leading over a hundred people to block the doors of the Idaho state senate. Few stories are as compelling in covering the rise and fall of queer protest movements and the high personal costs of civil disobedience. LeFavour’s vivid writing is shaped by seven years as a wild-land firefighter and lone backcountry ranger and decades living in one of the most beautiful and most politically hostile states in the nation. With armed extremism and discrimination against gay and trans people rising, LOVE AND PROTEST is both inspirational and cautionary -- an evocative and important book for our time. LeFavour is an award-winning journalist, fiction and creative non-fiction writer whose stories and essays have appeared in The North American Review, Idaho Wilderness Considered, Confluence, Sawtooth-White Cloud, among others. (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent for this project.)

After an ACL injury halted his athletic career and dreams of turning pro, Dakotah Tyler turned from Division I football at the University of Kentucky to delving into the mysteries of the Universe. During his recovery, Carl Sagan’s and Neil de Grasse Tyson’s documentaries turned his sights from the gridiron to the galaxies. With the grit and resilience of years of athletic competition, Dakotah transitioned to academia, is now an Astrophysics PHD Candidate at UCLA, and a star on TikTok @dtstarkid (138k followers) among other media (260,000+ total). In THE UNIVERSE PLAYBOOK: LESSONS ON LIFE FROM THE STARS, Tyler educates readers about the known universe while illustrating the deeper intellectual and spiritual connections he discovered on his astrophysics journey. Drawing parallels between cosmic phenomena and human experiences, the book offers both inspiring scientific insights and practical life lessons. For instance, understanding Cosmology—the history and evolution of the Universe—brings us into deeper awareness of the broad structures and forces that shape our own evolution so that we find deeper meaning in the Universe. Dakotah's academic journey also crafted him into a leading voice in science communication and education. As one of the few Black professionals in astrophysics, he's on a mission to ignite curiosity and wonder, especially among young people and communities overlooked by traditional science education. Through social media and collaborations with educational and other STEM organizations, Dakotah Tyler is making science relatable and accessible to all. (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent for this project.)

Leadership expert Dr. Stacey Guenther’s COHERENCE: THE SCIENCE OF CULTIVATING GROUP MAGIC reveals new evidence about the importance of human connection, combining the scientific approach of Dr. Daniel Siegel’s Intraconnected and Dr. Vivek Murthy’s Together with the spirituality of Dr. Joseph Dispenza’s Becoming Supernatural. Guenther views coherence as an energetic phenomenon that originates within an individual and radiates out to other people. Uniquely, Guenther offers her own fascinating new research into the phenomenon, how it is contacted and created, and how people experiencing coherence make sense of it. People are seeking alternative ways of getting along as a growing epidemic of loneliness, suicide, and financial stress increases the need for people to work together. And COHERENCE offers numerous practices, activities, and other developmental processes for moving toward coherence in groups that are cultivating connections. Part of an evolutionary leap that invites readers to view groups in a revolutionary way, COHERENCE guides readers to open their minds, get to know themselves and their groups better, and move toward a more integrated experience in the world. A faculty member of George Mason University, affiliated with the Organization Development and Knowledge management program, Guenther’s view on interconnectedness and how to get there is uniquely focused on beingness, addressing the topic of separateness with new suggestions, science, and hope for solving the poly-crisis of the global community. (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent for this project.)

Forest protection is part of Kathy Leonard Czepiel’s job managing endangered land for the environmental organization, Save the Sound. So, she was shocked to discover that her ancestors, a dynasty of ironworkers, were responsible for the destruction of several major forests in Europe and colonial America for wood to run their iron foundries. In TANGLED ROOTS: A FAMILY HISTORY IN FIVE FORESTS, Czepiel  sets out on a quest to find those ancient forests and to protect and restore extant forests today. Reminiscent of Beloved Beasts: Fighting for Life in an Age of Extinction and Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest, TANGLED ROOTS dives into medieval and colonial history to find out what happened to the five forests linked to her family tree and whether any of them survived. Urgently linking past and present, Czepiel crafts a dramatic personal story about her ancestors, their relationship with the forests, and how she ended up working in land forest protection 14 generations after her oldest known ancestor was born near the forests of Kent, England. Forests affect the health of the entire planet, yet we have lost more than a billion acres of forest globally since 1990. With lively science and compelling narrative, Czepiel brings to life how we got to this tipping point and what we should be doing today to protect our forests and trees. (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent for this project.)

In POTOMAC CREEK: PORTRAITS OF LIFE ON A SOUTHERN FARM, immigrant author, outdoorsman, and environmental activist Ranjit Singh weaves vibrant tales of rural lives, propelling readers into a larger world of wonder, pain, and ineffable beauty. The Home Place by J. Drew Lanham meets Rooted by Lyanda Haupt and Conversations with Birds by Priyanka Kumar in this beautifully written narrative. Asking what it means to belong to and be of a place, POTOMAC CREEK situates life in a specific locale within larger biological, historical, ethical, and spiritual contexts, proving that wherever we find ourselves, we’re never apart from the wild world or the lives that came before us. Through historical and scientific research, tales of colorful human, animal, and plant characters, and intimate meditations, POTOMAC CREEK also offers fresh insights into our place in the world today, establishing unconventional connections. From his own research, Singh reports how older and newer residents value land differently; these differences are entangled in our culture wars and understanding them can lead to better environmental strategies. An associate professor at the University of Mary Washington, international affairs expert, and former faculty with the Naval War College, Singh notes that imperialism introduced problematic invasive weeds to the US and examines the tangled attitudes towards invasives and immigrants. Viewing the war on invasives through the lens of classical military strategy, Singh reveals how wildlife managers and agricultural economists are caught in traps the military knows too well.  (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent for this project.)

Rights Round Up

THE BLUE PLATE by Mark Easter went to Penguin Random House Audio. CONTROLLED BURN and JUST KEEP WALKING by Erin Soderberg Downing went to Tantor Media. CABLES AND CONJURERS by Nancy Warren went to Tantor.

CORRUPT by Penelope Douglas went to Euromedia for Czech rights. BIRTHDAY GIRL and CORRUPT went to HarperCollins France for French rights. BIRTHDAY GIRL and CREDENCE went to Family Leisure Club for Ukrainian rights. PUNK 57, CREDENCE, and BIRTHDAY GIRL went to SVM for English in the Netherlands and Dutch rights. CORRUPT and HIDEAWAY went to Quinta Essencia/LeYa for Portuguese rights. DEVIL’S NIGHT, CONCLAVE, and FIRE NIGHT went to Family Leisure Club for Ukranian rights. HOPELESS by Colleen Hoover went to Topseller for Portuguese rights. VERITY went to Otwarte for Polish rights. HEART BONES went to Planeta for Spanish rights. LAYLA went to Modernista for Swedish rights. NEVER NEVER by Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher went to Record for Portuguese rights and Otwarte for Polish rights. PERFECT LITTLE MONSTERS by Cindy R.X. He went to Thienemann for German rights and We Need Ya for Polish rights. THE LAST DRAGON OF THE EAST by Katrina Kwan went to Kobiece for Polish rights and Destek Yayinlari for Turkish rights.. LAST NIGHT AT THE TELEGRAPH CLUB by Malinda Lo went to Artbooks for Ukrainian rights. INTERSTELLAR by Avi Loeb went to Zysk for Polish rights and TJ Izsavasto for Serbian rights. FIRST BLOOD by David Morrell went to Pipoca and Nanquim for Brazilian Portuguese rights. STORY THIEVES by James Riley went to Beyaz Balina for Turkish rights. THE HEAT AND THE FURY by Peter Schwartzstein went to Footnote Press Limited for UK & Commonwealth rights. UNDER THE SURFACE by Diana Urban went to Fabula for Ukrainian rights. WATER MOON by Samantha Sotto Yambao went to Storia Books for Romanian rights. THINGS WE NEVER SAID by Samantha Young went to Orange Books for Bulgarian rights. THERE WITH YOU went to Fokus for Croatian rights. THE NOCEBO EFFECT by Michael H. Bernstein, Charlotte Blease, Cosima Locher, and Walter Brown went to Hakuyosha Publishing for Japanese rights. THE ONLY LIGHT LEFT BURNING by Erik J. Brown went to CooBoo/Albatros for Czech rights. CAT’S PEOPLE by Tanya Guerrero went to Garzanti for Italian rights. THE FAVORITES by Layne Fargo went to Diyojen Yayincilik for Turkish rights. HEARTS THAT CUT by Kika Hatzopoulou went to Giunti for Italian rights. THE RED PALACE by June Hur went to Aser El Kotob for Arabic rights. A CRANE AMONG WOLVES and ADORATION went to Il Castoro for Italian rights. A CRANE AMONG WOLVES went to Olimpos for Turkish rights. MIDNIGHTS WITH YOU by Clare Osongco went to Globo Livros for Portuguese rights. THRIVING WITH ANXIETY by David H. Rosmarin went to Kuraldisi for Turkish rights. THE FASTEST WAY TO FALL by Denise Williams went to Knigolove for Ukrainian rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PARENTS DON’T DO and by Amy Morin went to MyMirror for Hindi rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PEOPLE DON’T DO and 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PARENTS DON’T DO went to MyMirror for Marathi rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PEOPLE DON’T DO WORKBOOK, 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG COUPLES DON’T DO, and 13 THINGS STRONG KIDS DO went to Penguin Random House Mexico for Spanish rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PEOPLE DON’T DO, 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PARENTS DON’T DO, 13 THINGS STRONG KIDS DO, 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG WOMEN DON’T DO, 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG COUPLES DON’T DO, and 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PEOPLE DON’T DO WORKBOOK went to China Science and Technology Press Co for simplified Chinese rights.

Recent Sales

BITTER HONEY by Jennie Durant went to Island Press in a World English rights deal by Leslie Meredith.

LIVE STREAM by Jenna Kernan went to Bookouture in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.

ANIMAL EYES by Emily Snape went to Little Simon in a World rights deal by John Rudolph.

THE MOSCOW PLAYBOOK by Bruce Berglund went to Triumph Books in a World rights deal by John Rudolph.

FORTUNES OF TEXAS BOOK 2 by Tara Taylor Quinn went to Harlequin in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.

THE BURNING SIDE by Sarah Damoff went to Simon & Schuster in a North American rights deal.

THE GRAND DEFLECTION by David Conrad-Perez went to NYU Press in a World English rights deal by Jessica Papin.

INSPECTOR QUACK AND THE CASE OF THE MISSING UNDERPANTS by Anica Mrose Rissi went to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.

THE DOG’S KITCHEN by Joelle Galloway and Robin Young went to BenBella in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.

WHAT COMES NEXT? By Caitlin Forbes went to Lake Union in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.

CAREER WOUNDS by Mandy Tang went to New World Library in a World English rights deal by Leslie Meredith.

A PLAY OF SHADOWS by Dan Poblocki went to Scholastic in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.

PRESS 1 FOR INVASION by Jeremy Dauber went to Aladdin in a North American rights deal by Stacey Glick.

FLIGHT OF THE SPARROW and UNTITLED BOOK 2 by Fallon DeMornay went to Podium in a North American rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

TO KILL A COOK and a second book by W.M. Akers went to Putnam in a World rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.

SLINGSHOTS, SOTHS, AND GIANT STINGING TREES by Meg Lowman went to Zest/Lerner in a World rights deal by Jessica Papin.

SARAH KIEFFER: GLUTEN-FREE BAKING by Sarah Kieffer went to Chronicle in a World rights deal.

LAN’S RED SCARF by Siyang Lim went to Atheneum in a World rights deal by John Rudolph.

AN ANCIENT WITCH’S GUIDE TO MODERN DATING by Y.Q. March went to Saga in a World English rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

THE MARRIAGE SLIP by Laura Barrow  went to Lake Union in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.

THE OPTIMIST’S GUIDE TO THE END OF THE WORLD by Amy Holman Edelman and Chris Begley went to Ten Speed in World rights deal by Leslie Meredith.

DARWIN’S CHILD by Michael Sims went to Basic Books in a World rights deal by Jessica Papin.

KESTREL BARKS BACK by Joy McCullough went to Atheneum in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

THE HOLIDAY BAKING DECK by Sarah Kieffer went to Chronicle in a World rights deal.

PHANTOM ACADEMY by Christine Virnig went to Aladdin in a North American rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

JOYRIDE by Ellen Meister went to Montlake in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.

THE BRIARS by Sarah Crouch went to Atria in a World English rights deal.

LOVE ON THE RECORD and UNTITLED BOOK 2 by Isabelle Engel went to St. Martin’s Press in a World English rights deal by Kendall Berdinsky.

THE MACABRE by Kosoko Jackson went to Harper Voyager in World English rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

SALTY, NOT SWEET by Florence Fabricant went to Running Press in a World English rights deal.

ON HOOPS by Brandy Colbert went to Clarion in a North American rights deal by Michael Bourret.

THE PLAYBOY AND THE CHELSEA GIRL by John Glatt went to Kensington in a world rights deal.

LET IT BE A TALE by Zahra Hankir went to Penguin in a World rights deal by Jessica Papin.

THE BOOK TOUR and a second book by Emily Ohanjanians went to Ballantine in a World rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.

MOVE ON UP by Ashwanta Jackson went to W.W. Norton in a World rights deal by John Rudolph.

ANOMALY OF THE HEART by Mardi Link went to Abrams Press in a World rights deal.

DEADSTREAM by Mar Romasco Moore went to Viking Children’s in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

THE INVISIBLE MISS FURY by Deb Caletti went to Labyrinth Road in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.

READ AT YOUR OWN RISK by Remy Lai went to Hold Books for Young Readers in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy. 

PAY ATTENTION TO ME! by Kate McKean went to Sourcebooks in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.