At Readmagine in late May, a discussion on innovation among book fair leaders. From left are moderator Marifé Boix (Frankfurter Buchmesse); Eva Orúe (Madrid Book Fair); Juergen Boos (Frankfurter Buchmesse); and Piero Crocenzi (Salone Internazionale del Libro de Torino). Image: Publishing Perspectives, Porter Anderson
By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
BolognaFiere Hosts a Biennial Meeting
If you’ve ever wondered what happens when you’re not in the rights center at your favorite international book publishing trade show, one of the things that occurs every other year is a “Conference of International Book Fair Directors” in one or another trade fair location. This happens in addition to an annual meeting of directors who can be at the world’s largest of them all, Frankfurter Buchmesse (October 16 to 20).
The tradition of this group of trade show and book fair leaders meeting biannually began in 1994 at Bellagio, with the support of the Rockefeller Foundation.
On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday June 10, 11, and 12), the group will meet at BolognaFiere, where the Bologna Children’s Book Fair (March 31 to April 3) director Elena Pasoli will host the group to discuss issues expected to include political aspects of hosting the fairs; developments in literature sectors such as YA; bookstores; publishing’s production costs; “the balance between creating new and valuable offerings and maintaining a solid identity; the selection of guest-of-honor markets; technological developments; and B2B and B2C integration where book fairs are public-facing but with professional programs.
Expected to participate are representatives of
- Bologna Children’s Book Fair
- Frankfurter Buchmesse
- Guadalajara International Book Fair
- China Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair
- New Delhi World Book Fair
- Istanbul Book Fair
- Book World Prague
- Taipei International Book Exhibition
- Leipziger Buchmesse
- Warsaw International Book Fair
And by the way, you’ll find that our listings today include new sales on two very widely selling rights successes. Watch below for the work of Henrik Fexeus and Salla Siimukka.
As in each roundup, we use some of the sales copy supplied to us by agents and rights directors, editing that copy to give you an idea about a book’s nature and tone, but limiting the promotional elements. If you’d like to submit a deal to Publishing Perspectives, see the instructions at the end of this article.
Eavesdropping on Animals:
What We Can Learn From Wildlife Conversations
By George Bumann
- Publisher: Greystone Books, Vancouver
- Rights contact: Andrea Damiani, Greystone Books
- Book info: Read more here
This title is scheduled to release on October 15.
Reported rights sales:
- World Hungarian: Corvina Kiado
- Spain: Carbrame
George Bumann
“Humans once relied on the calls of wild animals to understand the natural world and their place in it. This guide reveals what our ancestors knew long ago—that tuning in to the owl in the tree or the deer in the gully can tell us important information and help us feel connected to our wild community.
“Animals have lots to tell us, if we listen. In his debut, Yellowstone-based wildlife guide and ecologist George Bumann explains how to train your eyes and ears to pick up the secret animal conversations all around—from those of squirrels to songbirds, butterflies and more.
“Listening to and observing creatures in your own backyard, on nearby trails, and in local parks, at seashores, in fields and forests, can lead to extraordinary experiences and a profound sense of belonging.”
Si j’avais su …
(If I had known …)
By Geneviève Després
- Publisher: Les 400 coups, Montreal
- Rights contact: Simon de Jocas, Les 400 coups
- Book info: Read more here
No rights sales reported as yet.
Geneviève Després
“Animals sometimes want too much. If I had known … presents a series of portraits of animals who get into trouble after forgetting to think about the consequences.
“But are animals the only ones this can happen to?
“For her first album as an author-illustrator, Geneviève Després offers us a series of funny and crazy, sometimes shocking situations reminding us that we have to be careful with our actions because we don’t always know what awaits us.”
Teeth: You Only Get Two Sets
By Magda N. Garguláková
Illustrated by Marie Urbankova
- Publisher: Albatros Media, Prague
- Rights contact: Tomáš Jodas, Albatros Media
- Book info: Read more here
Reported rights sales:
- Newest – Vietnamese: Coral Books
- Slovene: Hisa knjig
- Simplified Chinese: Ginkgo
- Catalan: Bindi Books
- Spanish: Bindi Books
- Hungarian: Scolar
Magda N. Garguláková, left, and illustrator Marie Urbankova
“A journey into dental health, this book has “sturdy pages,” dentist-approved content, and visuals.
“Teeth: You Only Get Two Sets takes young readers on an journey through the world of dental health.
“This nonfiction children’s book explores the origins of teeth and their internal structure. Children reading it discover the reasons behind toothaches, the uniqueness of growing only two sets of teeth, and the importance of early dental care.
“The narrative unfolds with a touch of whimsy, inviting readers to envision themselves with the teeth of a bat, adding a playful element to the educational adventure.”
Excerpt: From ‘Teeth: You Only Get Two Sets’ by Magda N. Garguláková and illustrator Marie Urbankova. Image: Albatros
Salla Simukka
As Red as Blood
By Salla Simukka
- Publisher: Tammi, Helsinki
- Rights contact: Anna Kappauf, Elina Ahlbäck Literary Agency
- Book info: Read more here
Reported rights sales:
- Newest – Finnish Karelian: Karjalan Sivistysseura
- Alabania: Muza
- World Arabic: Arab Scientific
- Argentina: Nuevo Extremo
- Azerbaijan: Qanun
- Belgium: Clavis
- Bosnia & Herzegovina: BTC Sahinpasic
- Portuguese/Brazil: Novo Conceito
- Bulgaria: Egmont
- French/Canada: Hachette Livre
- Spain/Catalan and Spanish: La Galera
- China: Modern Press
- Croatia: Znanje
- Czech Republic: Egmont
- Denmark: Gyldendal
- Estonia: Pegasus
- Faroe Islands: Bókadeildin
- French/France: Hachette Livre
- Georgia: Bakur Sulakauri
- Germany: Arena
- Greece: Metaixmio
- Hungary: Athenaeum
- Iceland: Forlagid
- Iceland/audio and ebooks: Storyside
- Indonesia: Gramedia/Bhuana Ilmu Populer
- Israel: Yedioth
- Italy: Mondadori
- Japan: Nishimura
- South Korea: Gimm Young
- Latvia: Zvaigzne
- Lithuania: Alma Littera
- Macedonia: Bata Press
- Malaysia: Buku Fixi
- Montenetro: BTC Sahinpasic
- Netherlands: Clavis
- Norway: Gyldendal
- Poland: Foksal/WAB
- Portuguese/Portugal: Presença
- Romania: Trei
- Russia: Eksmo
- Serbia: Vulkan
- Slovakia: Verbarium
- Slovenia: Mladinska
- Sweden: Rabén & Sjögren
- Taiwan: Emily Publishing
- Thailand: Nanmee Books
- Turkey: Altin Kitaplar
- United Kingdom and Commonwealth / English: Hot Key Books
- United States and Canada / English: Penguin Random House/Crown
- Vietnam: Alpha Books
- Film and television: Zerogravity Managem
Salla Simukka
In this 2013 release, part of the ‘Snow White Trilogy,’ the “17-year-old Lumikki Andersson goes to a high school of performing arts.
“She has made it a rule to stay out of things that do not involve her. However, the rule is put to the test on leap day when she finds 500 laundered euro notes hung out to dry in her school’s darkroom.
“It turns out that three students from Lumikki’s high school have in their possession plastic bags containing bloody notes, and soon Lumikki finds herself caught in a tangled web of international drug trading.”
The Sacrifice
By Henrik Fexeus
- Publisher: Bookmark Förlag, Stockholm
- Rights contact: Signe Bedinger, Nordin Agency
- Book info: Read more here
Reported rights sales:
- Newest – Spanish: Planeta
- Arabic: Al Arabi Publishing and Distributing, Egypt
- Bulgarian: Colibri
- Czech: Metafora
- Danish: People’s
- Dutch: Uitgeverij De Geus
- Catalan: Columna
- Estonian: Pegasus
- Greek: Metaixmio
- Icelandic: Sogur Publishing
- Italian: Marsilio Editore \
- Latvian: UAB Alma Littera
- Norwegian: Aschehoug
- Portuguese: Porto Editora
- Romanian: Editura Trei
Henrik Fexeus
“When David receives an email from an unknown woman claiming to have information about his childhood, he doesn’t know how to react. Ideally, he wants to ignore the message and instead sort out his feelings for the beautiful star lawyer Florence. However, David has no memories of the first 12 years of his life, so curiosity wins out and he answers the email.
“The woman who contacted him suddenly disappears without a trace and David becomes the prime suspect.
“Meanwhile, someone seems to be targeting him and everyone he cares about. With Florence’s help, he must now find out who is behind everything and how it is connected to his own missing memories. In the shadows lies a decades-old secret and players who have everything to gain from the truth not being revealed.
“The Sacrifice is the first installment in the ‘David Lund and Florence Tapper’ series. In this psychological suspense novel, a mystery unravels in two timelines in which the truth is both bigger and more devastating than some will expect.”
Submitting Rights Deals to Publishing Perspectives
Do you have rights deals to report? Agents and publishing-house rights directors can use our rights deal submission form to send us the information we need. If you have questions, please send them to Porter@PublishingPerspectives.com
We look forward to hearing from you.
More of Publishing Perspectives‘ rights roundups are here, and more from us on international rights trading is here.