June is for JOONE!

JOONE, a picture book by author-illustrator Emily Kate Moon, celebrates creative spirits and life's simple joys. The book published last week (in June, of course) from Dial Books for Young Readers.

The story centers upon a little girl named Joone who loves the color orange and ice cream sandwiches...

Joone lives with her grandfather in a yurt and has a pet turtle named Dr. Chin, who often travels around on her purple hat.

According to Moon, Joone simply walked into her head one day and Moon knew she had to write about her. But while Joone's idiosyncracies and fun-loving lifestyle came easily, the best way to render Joone in illustration form was a little more challenging.

Moon first created JOONE in Flash, a computer animation program.  When Dial Books for Young Readers expressed interest, they requested "more organic" illustrations. So Moon experimented with several different styles until she hit upon the perfect one: pencil and gouache.  Read more of the story and see examples of Moon's experimentations on her website here.

Once the illustration style was decided upon, the deal was struck, and the agent-author-editor team became official! The three met up several months ago to strategize about the book. Moon is pictured in the middle with Dial editor Nancy Conescu on the left of the photo and agent Jennifer Weltz on the right.

After the deal was made, Moon's next steps included completing the full and final illustrations. On her website, Moon shows two of her illustrations in each stage of that process: from early pencil sketches and thumbnail sketches (which were shown to Dial for feedback, notes, and approval), to more detailed sketches, to the finalized illustrations in pencil and gouache. See the stages here.

Below, you can see Moon hard at work completing her illustrations.  Her son supervises from her lap.

In order to celebrate JOONE's publication last week, JVNLA held an office party complete with what else but orange dresses and ice cream sandwiches.  Multiple Dr. Chins made appearances, as well as Joone's shoes and one very large purple hat. Below, we present some of the photos from all of the fun!

Above, multiple Dr. Chins hang out with Joone's purple hat, her shoes, and the book itself.

You can never have too many Joones! In the top row, from left to right, are Moon's agent Jennifer Weltz, Assistant Ariana Philips, and Agent Laura Biagi. In the bottom row, from left to right, are Agent Jessica Regel, Intern Megan Mills, and Agent and Contracts Manager Tara Hart.
 

Above, Joone runs toward ice cream sandwiches.

And, lastly, above is a group shot of many orange dresses, ice cream sandwiches, and JOONE picture books.

JOONE has been on the road, too. For the Niagara Writers Retreat and Conference, JVNLA Agent Laura Biagi attended a costume dinner in Joone's orange dress with Dr. Chin on her head. There were several other picture-book-themed costume attendees as well:

From left to right: Agent Laura Biagi; Susan Rich, editor of THE DARK by Lemony Snicket and Jon Klassen; and Barbara Elizabeth Walsh, author of THE POPPY LADY

While JVNLA has clearly had a lot of fun with JOONE, so have reviewers!  Below is a sampling of the wonderful reviews that have come in so far for the book.

“The brisk and breezy depiction of a single summer day features familiar activities, unusual settings and a cheerfully childlike first-person narration...Moon’s bright and colorful illustrations provide additional details and amplify the gentle humor...Listeners will request repeat readings to pore over the details of Joone’s unusual home and enjoy her creative approach to life. Joone could be a contemporary, country-dwelling cousin to Eloise: another precocious, articulate and turtle-loving child with charm to spare.” --Kirkus

“With her idiosyncratically spelled name, openhearted precociousness, and ever-present pet turtle, Dr. Chin, five-year-old Joone makes a winning tour guide to life with her grandfather...With a one-of-a-kind home, a spectacular tree house, a nearby river for swimming, and the supportive presence of her grandfather, Joone’s life is an enviable one. Moon’s ability to convey her heroine’s self-assured contentment and love for her grandfather without resorting to the twee or overly literal is the mark of a real...talent.” --Publishers Weekly

"A sweet, gentle narrative about a child who is being raised by her grandfather. The text, which celebrates the small things in life that a child might appreciate, reads smoothly and is written with some flair...The bucolic setting, Joone’s home, and the mood are more central to the book than the action. Moon shows promise, not only as a picture-book writer, but as an illustrator as well. The gouache and pencil illustrations are bright, colorful, and full of interesting detail." --School Library Journal

Dial Books for Young Readers, June 2013

A photo journey through BEA 2013

Last week, book madness descended on New York City for BookExpo America (BEA), an annual publishing conference and book exhibition extravaganza for publishers, industry experts, booksellers, librarians, and book lovers.

While educational panels, subsidiary rights meetings, and more take place throughout the conference, the most dazzling feature of BEA is always the Exhibition Hall, where publishers showcase the books they are most excited about for the upcoming fall season or that they have recently published.  JVNLA's books were featured prominently, so of course we hunted them down and snapped some photos in order to bring a part of BEA 2013 to our blog! 

To give you a sense of what the Exhibition Hall looks like, check out the photo below, showing conference attendees milling around several publishers' booths, including Algonquin and Workman.  Now, imagine this multiplied over 760,000 square feet of exhibition space! 

Clearly, many, many eyes were on the look out for exciting, new books.  We were pleased that so many of JVNLA's books were a part of the spotlight!

According to reports from the front at Sourcebooks, the line for a signed galley of Dianne Dixon's newest novel, THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY (September 2013), was long and didn't end until the last copies were given away!  THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY is the story of three women, each caught up in a web of secrets, and one haunted by a nightmare of a beautiful woman in a silver dress.  While we didn't get a picture of the galley line, we did snap one of Dixon standing beneath her cover as it presided over the Sourcebooks exhibition area.

One woman got started reading THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY right away!

The Lyons Press exhibition booth featured ONE PUNCH FROM THE PROMISED LAND: Leon Spinks, Michael Spinks, and the Myth of the Heavyweight Title by John Florio and Ouisie Shapiro (September 2013).  The book is a narrative nonfiction account of the two famous boxing brothers and the divergent paths their lives took.
 

At the Skirt! Books display table, Linda Hundt's recipe book based on her award-winning bakery of the same name, SWEETIE-LICIOUS PIES: Eat Pie, Love Life (October 2013), made passersby salivate.

C.J. Sansom's newest novel, DOMINION (Mulholland Books, January 2014), was an eagerly anticipated giveaway over at Hachette's booth. DOMINION sets readers in an alternate history in which Britain surrendered to Nazi Germany in 1940, and, twelve years later, a spy for the Resistance must rescue a man with a secret from a British mental hospital and smuggle him from the country.

Soft Skull Press's booth showcased Berlin Reed's just-released part-food memoir, part-argument for sustainable living, THE ETHICAL BUTCHER: How Thoughtful Eating Can Change Your World (April 2013). 

At the Penguin exhibition area, Jillian Cantor signed galleys of her new novel MARGOT (Riverhead, September 2013).  The novel is a reimagining of the life of Margot Frank, Anne Frank's sister, had she not died in a concentration camp in 1945.

Conference attendees were so excited about snagging a copy of MARGOT that even a baby rifled through the pages to get a quick glimpse of the story!

At Smithsonian Books, YOUR TICKET TO THE UNIVERSE: A Guide to Exploring the Cosmos by Kimberly K. Arcand and Megan Watzke (April 2013) stood out on a display table.

PASSION BLUE by Victoria Strauss (November 2012), a YA novel about a seventeen-year-old in Renaissance Italy sentenced to live in a convent when all she wants is true love, graced the display tables at the Amazon Children's Publishing booth.

BEYOND THE BEAR (March 2013), a memoir about surviving a bear attack and learning to live and love again, written by Dan Bigley and co-author Debra McKinney, was featured in the display racks over at Lyons Press.

Meanwhile, Algonquin arranged its featured books on the walls of its booth.  Just to the right and below the center, you'll find A LIFE IN MEN by Gina Frangello (February 2014), a novel of a woman diagnosed with debilitating cystic fibrosis who takes up her best friend's adventurous lifestyle across many countries and with many men after her friend's tragic death.

Jeryl Brunner signed copies of her newest celebrity travel book, MY CITY, MY LOS ANGELES: Famous People Share Their Favorite Places (March 2013) at the Globe Pequot Press booth.  We snapped a photo of her (center) with her agent Jessica Regel (left) and editor Amy Lyons (right).

In addition to Brunner, Slash Coleman was another JVNLA author selected by Globe Pequot Press to sign books at this year's BEA. Below is the sign announcing the times of the signings for Brunner's MY CITY, MY LOS ANGELES and Coleman's THE BOHEMIAN LOVE DIARIES (Lyons Press, July 2013).

And, here, check out Brunner's and Coleman's books on display at the Globe Pequot Press booth.

As you can see in the previous photo, the cover of Coleman's THE BOHEMIAN LOVE DIARIES features a young boy, shirtless and shoeless, wearing a motorcycle helmet.  Well, that boy made a special guest appearance at BEA.  Here he is below, pictured with the author.  Together, they took the BEA by storm!

A new bestseller, 20 years after publication

THE ORACLE GLASS by internationally beloved and critically acclaimed author Judith Merkle Riley was re-published in November by Sourcebooks. Now, almost twenty years since its original publication by Viking in 1994, the book has hit The New York Times bestseller list AND the USA Today bestseller list! The climb came just after THE ORACLE GLASS was featured as a Kindle Daily Deal and a Nook Daily Find on a Monday in early May.

As might be expected, the most significant impact appeared among e-book sales. In The New York Times rankings, THE ORACLE GLASS reached #7 on the E-Book Fiction list:

But e-book sales were most definitely not operating in an e-book bubble. THE ORACLE GLASS also hit #8 on The New York Times Combined Print and E-Book Fiction list:

On USA Today's overall bestseller list, THE ORACLE GLASS climbed to #16:

This bestseller success reflects the hard work and tactical strategy behind Sourcebooks's relaunch scheme. Sourcebooks bought rights to another Riley book at the same time as they bought rights to THE ORACLE GLASS.  This other book was THE MASTER OF ALL DESIRES, originally published by Viking in 1999.  It will be released in July, eight months after THE ORACLE GLASS's release.  Sourcebooks's two-part plan allows each book to capitalize on the promotions, sales, and successes of the other.

With THE ORACLE GLASS now a bestseller a month-and-a-half before Part II of Riley's Sourcebooks relaunch, THE MASTER OF ALL DESIRES is sure to reap much of the first book's success.

Sourcebooks also gave the books new, updated covers.  Below are the older covers so you can get a sense of the changes made:

And below are the two new covers!  Notice the commonalities: the font, layout, mystical tone, and the stars sprinkled throughout.  These commonalities brand the books as a pair. The print copy of THE ORACLE GLASS also has a lovely metallic sheen to it, with the title in raised lettering.  We're looking forward to seeing the print copy of THE MASTER OF ALL DESIRES when it arrives in July!

Furthermore, Sourcebooks paired new praise with the fabulous quotes the books had already garnered upon their original publication.  A sampling of the praise is below:

“Take a full cup of wit, two teaspoons of brimstone, and a dash of poison, and you have Judith Merkle Riley's mordant, compelling tale of an ambitious young woman who disguises herself as an ancient prophetess in order to gain entry into the dangerous, scheming glamour of the Sun King's court. Based on scandalous true events, THE ORACLE GLASS brims with our human foibles, passions, and eccentricities; it's a classic of the genre and unlike any historical novel you have ever read.” --C.W. Gortner, author of THE CONFESSIONS OF CATHERINE DE MEDICI, on THE ORACLE GLASS

“Open the pages and out comes a whiff of brimstone, as THE ORACLE GLASS transports you to the Paris of kings and witches, on a guided tour of corruption, love, and sorcery.” --Diana Gabaldon, bestselling author of OUTLANDER, on THE ORACLE GLASS

“Absorbing and arresting.” --The New York Times, on THE ORACLE GLASS

“Fascinating and factual.” --Los Angeles Times, on THE ORACLE GLASS

“Chilly, witty, and completely engrossing...Great, good fun.” --Kirkus, on THE ORACLE GLASS

“A delicious, romantic romp.” --The Seattle Times, on THE MASTER OF ALL DESIRES

“[A] dazzling mix of history, romance, and the occult...Riley [is] a writer who excels at getting the background right and creating strong, intelligent heroines.” --Kirkus, on THE MASTER OF ALL DESIRES

“Delightfully rich in history, humor, and imagination.” --San Jose Mercury News, on THE MASTER OF ALL DESIRES

“A tightly woven, suspenseful and fiendishly funny novel.” --Publishers Weekly, on THE MASTER OF ALL DESIRES

“A delightful blend of history, romance, and the supernatural, served with generous helpings of wit and humor.” --Booklist, on THE MASTER OF ALL DESIRES

How to depict a female pope

In celebration of the convergence of a new pope and Women's History Month, we bring to the forefront POPE JOAN by Donna Woolfolk Cross!

Pope Joan is a controversial figure from the 9th century, whose story can be found in legend and disputed historical records. According to these sources, extensively researched by Cross, Joan was a medieval woman who took up her brother's identity upon his death in a Viking attack.  She entered the monastery in his stead so she could receive the type of education denied to women in the Dark Ages.  Soon, she became renowned as a scholar and healer and ventured into Rome's political sphere. Eventually, her intelligence and talent led her to be elected pope, a position she held for two years before the discovery of her true gender.

While some discredit the legend entirely, other historians argue that enough evidence exists to prove the legend's legitimacy. They also posit that historical records are so difficult to find in the first place due to efforts by the Catholic Church to cover up the facts of Pope Joan's papacy.

In her novel, Donna Woolfolk Cross compiled her historical research into a fictionalized recounting of the type of person Pope Joan might have been, the events she might have lived through, the triumphs she might have achieved, and the trials she might have endured.

Cross's POPE JOAN was originally published by Crown in 1996 (with newer editions being released as recently as 2009). Thirty-two other countries published the book as well, and it quickly became an international bestseller. In 2009, the book was made into a movie that turned into a #1 film in Germany.  Learn more about the book and film in our previous posts here.

A female pope, especially one as surrounded in historical controversy as this one, offers many challenges and possibilities for her depiction on book covers. Some editions of the book give Pope Joan a more masculine appearance with just a hint of her female gender, others have chosen an androgynous look, while still others depict her with undeniably feminine features. Below we present several samples of the wide variations in Pope Joan's depiction across the globe.

(If you enjoy the below covers and are interested in further ruminations regarding covers, check out our post “How covers evolve across the globe” here.)

Indonesia, PT Serambi Ilmu Semesta, 2007 - This is a slightly stylized version of the 2005 US cover edition. Pope Joan's clothing doesn't look particularly feminine, but her hair is pulled back with a feminine, pearl hairpiece. You can view the 2009 US cover update, which zooms in on Pope Joan's face and cuts out the hairpiece, on the Random House website here.

Poland, Ksiaznica, 2000 - This cover has a much more ethereal feel. A face in the sky gazes over a medieval city. Is it the face of Pope Joan, looking over her congregants? Or the face of God? Meanwhile, a smaller, ghostly white figure floats over the buildings on the left.

Poland, Publicat, 2012 - For this much more recent publication of POPE JOAN in Poland, the figure of Pope Joan has been given a very masculine feel.  The depiction of her from behind avoids showing the possible feminine features of her face.  The dark brown and yellow-green coloring give the book a decidedly darker tone than Ksiaznica's Polish edition. This image is actually from a still of the movie, with the coloring changed by the publisher.

France, Presses de la Cite, 1997 - Here, Pope Joan's hair is long and she wears a dress.  She is decidedly feminine in appearance. Joan almost looks saintly, with angelic figures holding up her garments, adoring priests on her right, and adoring nuns on her left.

France, France Loisirs, 1997 – This is a French book club edition that would have appeared around the same time as the above French edition.  While Pope Joan looks more masculine in the face here, her pose, with the baby in her arms, harkens to that of paintings of the Madonna and child.

Bulgaria, Bard, 2008 - As indicated in the last cover, there is a baby involved in Pope Joan's story.  If you look closely enough, you'll see that this Bulgarian cover features a male-looking Pope Joan and a rather graphic outcome of her pregnancy. The image is based on historical paintings.

Latvia, Jumava, 2000 – Pope Joan looks very much like a nun here.  The puzzle piece stylization, with one puzzle piece missing, gestures to the mystery behind her legend.

Japan, Soshihsa, 2005 - Pope Joan's gender is ambiguous here.  The jewels and curled hair could certainly be an indication of the refinery that would have been in the pope's possession, and yet, with pearls threaded the hair as they are and around the neck like a necklace, readers are given a hint that the above might be a female figure.

Taiwan, Sitak Publishing, 2001 – This cover, by far, features the most feminine-looking version of Pope Joan, who appears more like a 1980s prom princess than anything else.  The buildings behind her give only the slightest hint that the book takes place in historical times.

Germany, Rutten and Loening, 2001 - While it may be hard to tell from our scanned version of the above cover, the red background is actually red velvet. The image in the center shows POPE JOAN with just the slightest hint of breasts.  Something about Pope Joan's story captivated readers in Germany, a country whose majority religion is split fairly evenly between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.  POPE JOAN became a mega-bestseller there, was beloved enough to be bound in velvet, and was turned into a play and a musical. Maybe the musical's next stop could be Broadway!

Korea, Yedam Publishing Company, 1999 - Here, Pope Joan's gender again appears rather ambiguous.  She looks ready for battle, sporting metal armor a bit like Joan of Arc would much later, in the fifteenth century.

UK, Quartet Books, 1998 – This cover depicts the type of wrap Joan might have worn around her chest underneath her papal clothes.  While the wrap and the necklace are certainly feminine in appearance, this cover cleverly reveals how any hints of Joan's femininity would have had to have been carefully hidden.

While a pope can be depicted in many different ways, as evidenced by the above cover images, it also seems apparent that it is a pope's actions that make a papal reign, or legend, or story, worthwhile--regardless of whether those actions were accomplished by a male or a female, a Benedict, or a Francis, or a Joan. 

In responding to the recent ascension of Pope Francis I, Donna Woolfolk Cross noted that nothing in papal edicts specifically states that a woman cannot become a pope. Maybe the next time we watch white smoke rise from the Sistine Chapel, we will be celebrating the election of a new female pope.

"Reminiscent of the best years of historical romance": Jane Ashford's Regency romances, new and re-released

Jane Ashford has been writing Regency romances since 1980. Her novels have been called “beautifully crafted” (Publishers Weekly), “riveting” (Rendezvous), and “scintillating” (Affaire de Coeur). In the words of Romance Communications, “Reading an Ashford novel borders on the euphoric as it tosses delight upon delight!”

Ashford wrote 18 Regency romances before taking a break from them in 1999, but this year she returns with a new Regency romance, ONCE AGAIN A BRIDE, which was published by Sourcebooks in February. Sourcebooks will also be re-releasing Ashford's 18-title backlist in stages over the next few years, with another, all-new, Regency romance coming out next year.

2013 is a very different time from the 1980s or 1990s, when Ashford's books first appeared. Accordingly, Sourcebooks has given Ashford's romances a shiny, new Regency look for our contemporary era. Below is the cover for Ashford's newest, ONCE AGAIN A BRIDE, featuring a mostly shirtless male and a Kate Hudson look-a-like:

MAN OF HONOUR will be the first Ashford book to be re-released by Sourcebooks. It was originally published by Warner Books in 1981 and will come out in September 2013. Below is the old, 1981 cover:

And, now, drumroll please for the 2013 cover:

THE MARRIAGE WAGER will be published by Sourcebooks in October 2013. Bantam Dell originally published it in 1996 with the below cover:

And, now, drumroll please for the 2013 cover:

Ashford has been traversing the internet, giving blog interviews, since the release of ONCE AGAIN A BRIDE. Over at Reading Romances, Ashford discusses the most important factors that go into the creation of her heroines and heroes: “I like them to be strong, able to bounce back from adversity, and kind.” Read more here, including which romance writer has influenced Ashford most and several fun facts about ONCE AGAIN A BRIDE.

Over at Historical Hussies, Ashford discusses how restricting marriage laws were for women in Regency England. The issue forms the basis of the plot in ONCE AGAIN A BRIDE. As Ashford explains, “As soon as she married, a woman's existence was incorporated into that of her husband, giving her the status of a feme covert (English spelling of a medieval Anglo-Norman phrase meaning 'covered woman'). She became, essentially, a non-person in the eyes of the law.” Read more about the ins and outs of Regency-era marriage laws here.

The reviews for ONCE AGAIN A BRIDE have been full of praise. Check out a sampling below:

“Ashford delights with a smoothly told Regency-era double romance in which gentry and faithful servants alike find family, love, and belonging...Offers a near-perfect example of everything that makes this genre an escapist joy to read: unsought love triumphs despite difficult circumstances, unpleasantness is resolved and mysteries cleared, and good people get the happy lives they deserve.” --Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Ashford spices up the plot of her latest Regency historical with an intriguing thread of mystery while at the same time realistically tempering the story with details about the social and political unrest of the time.” --Booklist

“Danger, mystery, and a Gothic slant add a touch of intrigue...Well-rendered, relatable characters, superb writing, an excellent sense of time and place, and gentle wit make this a romance that shouldn’t be missed. After an absence of ten years from the romance market, Ashford returns with a Regency winner that will please her longtime fans and garner new ones, as well.” --Library Journal

“ONCE AGAIN A BRIDE...is reminiscent of the best years of historical romance. Sweet and incredibly refined, this is a historical romance that proves second chances at love are always possible...Jane Ashford returns to the romance genre with grace and style...as if anything else could be expected. ONCE AGAIN A BRIDE is a passionate and emotionally engaging read that historical romance fans will love.” --The Romance Reviews

“Reminded me of an episode of Downton Abbey slightly turned on its head...A good must-read for Regency lovers.” --By the Broomstick Blog

“ONCE AGAIN A BRIDE is a really exciting Regency romance filled with intrigue and suspense...This is a not-to-miss and highly recommended historical Regency romance that follows a dark trail of murder and suspense. If you like a bit of thrill with your romance then you'll definitely want to try this one.” --Night Owl Romance, Reviewer Top Pick

Be sure to keep your eye out for more of Ashford's Regency romances—both new releases and re-releases—in the near future!