The countdown to Christmas has well and truly started at the Agency – Christmas trees, carols and jumpers are out in force…

It’s been another brilliant week for our children’s authors.

Poonam Mistry’s You’re Snug With Me continues to go from strength to strength and was included in the Guardian “Children’s and teens roundup of the best new picture book and novels“. The book also received a glowing review on Down the Rabbit Hole this week, and was included in Kirkus reviews six best picture books of 2018 – huge congratulations to Poonam.

Samuel Pollen’s honest account of male anorexia, The Year I Didn’t Eat was reviewed very well this week in Publishers Weekly: “Telling the story in a candid, often humorous first-person narrative, debut author Pollen draws Max’s life and recovery process realistically as a series of steps and setbacks: obsessive running and calorie-counting, a Christmas meal plan gone awry, and Ana’s constant voice (“Do you really need to eat that?”) share billing with school humor, moments of hope, and a loving family life.”

Holly Bourne’s brilliantly insightful novel, Am I Normal Yet? has been included in a paper in the British Journal of Psychiatry, titled: Am I Normal Yet: insights into the teenage agenda – psychiatry in literature. 

Over the weekend, Rona Halsall’s twisty psychological thriller,  Love You Gone hit No. 1 on iTunes across all books. The novel was published by earlier this month by Bookouture.

Gail Honeyman’s multi award-winning novel, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine continues to reign supreme at the top of the charts. It’s currently sitting at No. 3 in the Fiction list in the New York Times, No. 12 on the combined list, and No. 15 on audio.

Lots of Agency books have been included in Vanity Fair’s best books to gift this Christmas. Holly Bourne’s How Do You Like Me Now?, Michelle Elman’s Am I Ugly?, Katherine May’s The Electricity of Every Living Thing and Gail Honeyman’s Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine appeared alongside the likes of Michelle Obama’s autobiographical memoir, Becoming and Jodi Picoult’s A Spark of Light.

A huge congratulations to all of the participants in the Bluepencil First Novel Award, judged by our very own Madeleine Milburn, and of course to the winner, Jules Lampshire for her brilliant entry, My Poor Deluded Girl.

On the foreign rights front, Korean rights to C.J. Tudor’s The Taking of Annie Thorne have gone to Dasan Books.

Finnish rights to Fiona Barton’s The Suspect have gone to Bazar Kustannus.

Polish rights to C.L. Taylor’s The Fear and Sleep have gone to Albatros.

And finally, Polish rights Holly Bourne’s How Hard Can Love Be?, What’s A Girl Gotta Do? and …And A Happy New Year? to Zielona Sowa.