HARRY TRUMAN'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE is an excellent success story

by Jane

When my client Matthew Algeo suggested the idea of doing a book about the road trip Harry Truman and his wife Bess took right after his presidency was over, I thought it was a terrific idea. The proposal went to 34 publishers in three different rounds beginning in April 2007 and finally selling in early July of that year. There were two bids on the project and Matthew chose Chicago Review Press, a small publisher with whom we do quite a bit of business.

The book was published earlier this year, has earned more than twice its advance and has received incredible reviews and press mentions which I am sharing here. Success stories like this one don’t happen often but when they do, I find them enormously gratifying:

Washington Post Book World
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The Daily Herald (TN)
ArtVoice (NY)
Wisconsin Rapids Tribune
News-Sentinel (IN)
Pennsylvania Magazine
Pekarskie (PA) News-Herald 
Sauk Valley (IL) Weekend 
Ogle County (IL) Life/Rock Valley Shopper
TargetMarketingMag
Phillyburbs
XM/Sirius Radio’s The Ron and Fez Show
Kettering-Oakwood Times
History Magazine
Dayton Daily News
Memoirs of an Amnesiac
Columbus Dispatch
Carroll County (MD) Times
Jefferson City (MO) News Tribune
WTKF FM's Coastal Daybreak
Book Reviews
American Road
College & Research Libraries News
New Press (OK)
WGN-AM’s Extension 720 with Milt Rosenberg
Baltimore Sun's Read Street
JetSetting
Mountaineer (NC)
Cars & Parts
Nashville Public Library's Off the Shelf
Daily Reflector (NC)
Selma (CA) Enterprise
American Spirit
American History
Delaware State News
Baltimore Jewish Times
XM/Sirius Radio's Peter Greenberg Worldwide
Frederick (MD) Post
Pennsylvania Gazette
Virginian-Pilot
Dover (DE) Post
Something Good to Read
Presidents and Presidency of the United States
AAA Traveler
Indianapolis Star
Bucks County (PA) Herald
New York Times' In Transit
Newsmax
Journal of American Culture
Washington Post
Boing Boing
Urban Coaster
Dave's Travel Corner
Creative Loafing
Chowan (NC) Herald
BookPage
Jackson (MS) Free Press
Cumberland Times-News
Press-Telegram (CA)
Allegheny Radio Corporation's "Magic Morning Show"
WTCS-AM's "The Morning Show"
Appalachian Independent
WVON-AM's "Paul Lisnek Show"
WLS-AM's  "The Roe Conn Show"
Lake Michigan Shore
Illinois Radio Network's "Eye on Illinois"
Washington Times
KMBZ-AM's "Kansas City's Morning News"
Palladium-Item (IN)
WZUS-FM's "Scott and Scott in the Morning"
St. Louis Beacon
WMEA-FM's "Maine Things Considered"
WILP-AM's "Happenings Q&A"
KGO-AM's "The John Rothmann Show"
Riverfront Times
The Week
Herald and Review (IL)
History News Network
New Daily Record (MD)
Star-Democrat (MD)
Herald-Star (OH)
Columbia Daily Tribune (MO)
American Public Media's Marketplace
PW Daily
Bonner Springs-Edwardsville Chieftain (MO)
Oregonian
Staten Island Live
Examiner
Alfred Sun (NY)
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Triphow
KCUR-FM's "The Walt Bodine Show"
KCMO's "The KCMO Morning Show"
Real Simple
World Hum
World Wide Woodard
Booklist
LJ Express
Publishers Weekly
Library Journal

Farewell, dear Kirkus!

by Michael

I was pretty shocked to see a tweet this morning that Kirkus would be no longer. Honestly, my emotions are rather mixed. My authors’ books have fared well (I had two author make their year-end round-up of the best young adult books), while others, who shall of course remain nameless, haven’t been so lucky. Though many different people wrote the reviews for Kirkus, there was always a very particular snarkiness about their bad reviews. I don’t think any other publication can make an author cry the same way that Kirkus did. On more than one occasion I have warned an author before the review to be prepared, because if you’ve never read one of their reviews and they go after you, it can be soul-crushing.

But when they did give an author and book a good review, it always meant that much more. Pleasing them wasn’t easy, so doing so was all the more satisfying. And if you were lucky enough to get a star, well, then you knew you’d written something not just great but truly worthy.

So even though I told authors again and again that Kirkus and those negative reviews didn’t matter (and they didn’t), I’m sincerely going to miss complaining about the harsh reviews and secretly cherishing the positive ones. Farewell, friend.

All Palin's Eve

by Jim

Here we are on the eve of Going Rogue publication, and I know how excited we all are. Harper reportedly plunked down $5 million for the book, which I initially thought was crazy but now think was crazy genius.

Some people love Sarah Palin. I mean...well, I’ve heard that some people do. I live in New York where Republicans are mythical creatures that people report spotting but can never empirically prove the existence of. But the point is, the success of Palin’s book isn’t going to be based on whether the people who love her turn out to buy it. It’s going to have to do with just how much vitriol the people who hate her can muster up against the book.

Let’s face it: liberal columnists and bloggers looooove to hate Sarah Palin. She’s a go-to whipping post, and the articles lambasting the book are already hitting the web faster than you can say, “Gotcha!”

Tomorrow promises to be a full media pile-on, and that’s going to send thousands upon thousands of readers to the book store. Palin’s got an Ann Coulter-ish appeal. She’s brash enough that the people who love her admire her spunk and the people who don’t are terrified.

I don’t know whether or not I’m going to buy the book, but I know that I could be swept away by the media frenzy. Whether or not I actually read it, I do know for sure that I’m going to spend more time on the book’s Amazon page watching the frequently hysterical freak-outs from Palin’s most disturbed supporters and detractors. What can I say--I love a good fight.

So who already bought it? Who is boycotting? And better yet--who’s going to the book tour?!

The new Oprah: Glenn Beck?

This New York Times article on Glenn Beck as the Oprah of the thriller community could have larger implications for the publishing business if Beck's popularity stays at a high (though hardly anyone has the longevity of an Oprah). But it strikes me as an odd and interesting mix of elements to have such a significant impact: one, because he's so conservative and publishers and authors tend to be more liberal, and two, because he focuses so heavily on one genre, thrillers. That said, in my mind, it's nice to see both sides getting along and any outlet that helps to sell books in this market is worth looking at very seriously, especially since we hear Oprah, who has had her share of ups and downs when it comes to book publishing, might be moving on in the next couple of years.


-Stacey