Six Blake Friedmann titles selected as The Bookseller’s Season Highlights

We are delighted to share that a fine array of six Blake Friedmann authors have been picked by The Bookseller in their Spring/Summer Buyers’ Guide Season Highlights. Three of our authors’ titles were selected in the Fiction guide, and a further three in the Non-Fiction guide.

Top Row: GROW WHERE THEY FALL by Michael Donkor (Fig Tree); THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD by Peter James (Pan Macmillan); PASSIONTIDE by Monique Roffey (author photo: Marcus Bastel).
Bottom Row: NEWBORN by Kerry Hudson (Chatto & Windus); MY FAMILY MEALS by Grace Mortimer; EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE by Kathryn Faulke (Fig Tree).

The nominated titles in fiction are: GROW WHERE THEY FALL, the stunning second novel by Michael Donkor (Fig Tree, 7 March); the much-anticipated THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD: Sandy’s Story by Peter James, which spins off from the bestselling Roy Grace series to uncover the long-speculated mystery of Sandy’s disappearance (Pan Macmillan, 9 May); and PASSIONTIDE, a powerful new Caribbean-set novel by Costa Prize winner Monique Roffey (Harvill Secker, 27 June).

In Non-Fiction, the titles selected are: NEWBORN by Kerry Hudson, her beautiful memoir detailing her experience of building a family without a blueprint to work from (Chatto & Windus, 1 February); EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE, a heartbreaking and uplifting debut memoir by a community care worker (Fig Tree, 11 July); and MY FAMILY MEALS by Grace Mortimer, a fresh collection of simple but delicious five-ingredient recipes (HQ, 18 July).

The Bookseller is the UK’s weekly trade magazine for the publishing industry: their biannual Buyer’s Guides, listing almost every book publishing in the UK, are highly influential catalogues, used by bookshops to select stock they want to order; by the press looking for books to feature and review, and authors to interview; and by other literary enthusiasts who want to know what’s coming out when and what to get excited about.

Congratulations to all of our authors whose upcoming publications have been selected!

Kerry Hudson’s new memoir NEWBORN to be published by Chatto & Windus

Image: Nick Tucker

Becky Hardie, Deputy Publishing Director at Chatto & Windus, has acquired rights in UK & Commonwealth territories (including Canada) to Kerry Hudson’s powerful new memoir NEWBORN from Juliet Pickering.

NEWBORN is a beautiful, empowering memoir about creating a family in the midst of chaos, and learning new ways to find happiness. It continues the journey Kerry started in her bestselling memoir LOWBORN, illuminating her experiences of becoming a mother, reshaping her future and reclaiming her identity.

Kerry Hudson is celebrated for her emotionally and politically powerful writing about growing up in poverty. Her books and journalism have changed the conversation and touched countless lives.

In this new book she asks: what next, after a childhood like hers? What hope is there of creating a different life for herself, let alone future generations? We see how Kerry found love, what it took to decide to start a family of her own and how fragile every step of the journey towards parenthood was. All along the way, she faces obstacles that would test the strongest foundations, from struggles with fertility to being locked down in a Prague maternity hospital to a marriage in crisis. But over and over again, her love, hope, fight – and determination to break patterns and give her son a different life – win through and light her path.

Kerry Hudson says: ‘As with LOWBORN, this continues the tradition of writing the book I needed to read myself. I know I am one of many who experiences the aftershocks of childhood deprivation and who has complicated or estranged relationships with their own mothers. I didn't have a map for motherhood or a blueprint for building a healthy family but in this book I explore how, with love, laughter and the hardest lessons, it is absolutely possible. Though I never say this, I'm very proud of this book. It's as candid as anything I've ever written and I hope it will, as LOWBORN did, find the readers who truly need it.'

Becky Hardie, Deputy Publishing Director of Chatto & Windus says: ‘Ever since Chatto published her first novel, we’ve watched as Kerry’s beautifully open and honest writing has reached and inspired more and more readers. She truly has changed lives, and the publishing industry. In this new book, she faces perhaps the biggest challenge yet: how to build a family when you don’t have a model to work from. As it turns out, this isn’t perhaps the biggest challenge, and she will need to draw more than ever on the adventurous spirit, resilience, sense of humour and empathy she is so celebrated for.’ 

Chatto & Windus will publish NEWBORN in hardback in Spring 2024.

About Kerry Hudson

Kerry Hudson was born in Aberdeen. Growing up in a succession of council estates, B&Bs and caravan parks provided her with a keen eye for idiosyncratic behaviour, material for life, and a love of travel.

Her first novel, TONY HOGAN BOUGHT ME AN ICE-CREAM FLOAT BEFORE HE STOLE MY MA (Chatto & Windus), was published in July 2012 and was shortlisted for eight literary prizes, including the Guardian First Book Award and Green Carnation Prize, and won Scottish First Book of the Year. Kerry’s second novel, THIRST, was developed with support from the National Lottery through an Arts Council England grant, and published by Chatto in July 2014 before being shortlisted for the Green Carnation Prize. Her first work of non-fiction, LOWBORN (2019) became a Times bestseller and was hailed as ‘One of the most important books of the year’ by The Guardian.

Published in France as La Couleur de L'eau by Editions Philippe Rey, translated by Florence Lévy-Paolini, THIRST was the winner of prestigious literary prize, Prix Femina Etranger 2015, going on to become a bestseller in France. It was also shortlisted for the European Strega prize in Italy, after being published there as SETE, by Minimum Fax.

Kerry also wrote the script for HANNAH, which was broadcast on BBC Four, starring Emma Fryer, as part of SKINT, a series of seven 15-minute monologues tackling the subject of poverty in the UK. HANNAH tells the story of a mother who is trying to do the best for her child whilst facing homelessness.

Kerry writes for various publications including The New York Times, Guardian, Big Issue and Press and Journal, and is a columnist for The Herald. In 2022 she was nominated for Columnist of the Year in the Regional Press Awards. In 2020, Kerry was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

She currently lives in Glasgow.

Praise for Kerry Hudson

‘A fearless writer, an inspiring woman’ – Jackie Annesley ― The Sunday Times

‘It’s not just Kerry Hudson’s writing that is vibrant, authentic and true, it’s the person herself, it’s where the writing comes from; a wise and generous heart.’ – Kit de Waal

‘There are few writers who use their work to shine a light on working class lives, and fewer still who use their success, as Kerry herself said recently in The Guardian, ‘to send the elevator back down’ to help those waiting in the basement to make their way up. Kerry Hudson is one of those writers who stands out for her empathy and passion and her tireless championing of the excluded.’ – Paul McVeigh

Follow Kerry on Twitter

Chatto & Windus acquires HOW TO HOPE: A Survival Guide, by Kerry Hudson

Becky Hardie, Deputy Publishing Director of Chatto & Windus, bought World English rights in HOW TO HOPE from Juliet Pickering, for publication in 2022 in print, audio and eBook.

Hudson.jpg

We are living in troubled and troubling times and the cumulative effect on our physical and mental well-being is beginning to show. In this new book, prize-winning author and journalist Kerry Hudson sets out to understand why resilience and hope, so often life-saving, can be easily accessed by some but not all of us, and how we can foster these qualities in ourselves and others. Drawing on her own experiences and speaking to a range of experts, including academics and front-line staff, she’ll seek out the best examples of responses to our most common challenges – poverty, housing, work, love and mental health issues – as well as the problems facing the wider world.

From her debut novel TONY HOGAN BOUGHT ME AN ICE-CREAM FLOAT BEFORE HE STOLE MY MA to her memoir LOWBORN (‘should be required reading’ – Sunday Times) and her Pool columns, Kerry Hudson’s work has consistently called to our attention the reality and lasting effects of growing up poor in a broken society. At a time of uncertainty and change, HOW TO HOPE will be a must-read guide to the future.

Kerry Hudson said: ‘Hope and resilience have always been central themes in my books and I couldn't be more thrilled that this new book will allow me to focus fully on these tools which have repeatedly proved life-saving for me. It's also a particular gift to get to write this book at this time, when it feels hope is needed now more than ever.

‘This book also marks a decade of working with a team of brilliant women – my editor Becky Hardie, my literary agent Juliet Pickering and the team at Chatto and Windus and Vintage. They have helped me write the books I dreamed of writing and championed me every step of those ten years. I'm honoured and privileged to be working with this dream team once again.’  

Becky Hardie said: ‘This is the perfect next book for Kerry. The response to LOWBORN was overwhelming and she has become a powerful and humane voice in a world that now more than ever needs clear, compassionate and hopeful voices. One of Kerry’s greatest gifts as a writer is getting to the heart of people’s lives and stories, and HOW TO HOPE promises plenty of that, alongside her knack for political and social observation and her own remarkable resilience. We are so proud to be Kerry’s publisher and even discussing the idea of this book gave us all a boost at a very difficult time.’

LOWBORN will be published in paperback on 6th August.

About the author

Kerry Hudson was born in Aberdeen. Her first novel, TONY HOGAN BOUGHT ME AN ICE-CREAM FLOAT BEFORE HE STOLE MY MA, won the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust First Book Award and was shortlisted for an array of prizes including the Guardian First Book Award and the Sky Arts Awards. THIRST, her second novel, won the prestigious prix Femina étranger. LOWBORN is her first work of non-fiction, and her journey has led to a highly successful column for the Pool. She currently lives in Prague.

Praise for Lowborn:

‘It should be required reading… [Hudson is] a fearless writer, an inspiring woman’ — Jackie Annesley, Sunday Times

‘A book that cuts like a knife’ — Jenny Colgan, Spectator

‘If there were any justice in the world, there would be a copy of Hudson's powerful examination of her impoverished upbringing and why it continues to resonate under every politician's Christmas tree’  — Sarah Hughes, i Books of the Year

‘Compelling, fascinating and well-written, undeniably grim but peppered with humour and tenderness... Hudson demonstrates that only by lifting whole communities out of poverty...can we hope to avoid consigning children and young people like her – vulnerable and blameless – to the worst of lives’ — Kit de Waal, Daily Telegraph

‘Lowborn is in part an indictment of a country that claims to still have a functioning welfare state…Most of all, it is a moving portrait of the survival and eventual flourishing of a remarkable spirit’ — John Harris, Guardian

BFLA Best of 2019 and Picks for 2020

We are so proud that our authors have been featured in so many of the Best of 2019 selections and picks for 2020. In celebration of these amazing achievements, we have compiled this summary of the lists in which our authors were included, along with the praise that accompanied their selection.

BEST BOOKS OF 2019

MANDALAY: RECIPES AND TALES FROM A BURMESE KITCHEN by Mimi Aye
‘It’s rare to come across a book that opens up a largely unknown cuisine, but MANDALAY does exactly that. Burmese recipes that combine the deliverable with the authentic, written with calm authority leavened with personal touches from an engaging personality.’ – Financial Times, Best Books of 2019: Food and Drink

‘This will likely be an introduction for many to an underappreciated cuisine, partly because of the politics of the place. Worry not, you are in excellent hands. Aye is a gifted recipe writer and opinionated champion of the food of her family (see, for instance, the short section on “Why MSG is A-OK”). This is a book to read as well as cook from, packed with evocative imagery.’ — The Observer, The 20 best food books of 2019

‘The book that opened my mind, and belly, to Burmese food, a cuisine I knew little about. Aye is the most beguiling of guides, weaving in tales of Burmese family and childhood travels, alongside recipes for mohinga and pickled tea-leaf salad.’ — Tom Parker Bowles, Daily Mail, Books of the Year 2019

‘Wonderful… The perfect introduction to a cuisine that draws from its neighbours in Thailand, India and China while making dishes that are quite unique. MiMi gives detailed descriptions of ingredients, techniques and recipes - giving the home cook all the tools, tips and - most of all - inspiration to make these dishes themselves.’ — Hot Dinners, The Best Cookbooks for Christmas Presents in 2019

CTRL+S by Andy Briggs
‘After more than a dozen novels for children, Andy Briggs has turned his hand to adult SF in the fast-paced, hi-tech thriller CTRL+S… A slick plot and a neat resolution.’ — The Guardian, Best Recent Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror

LITTLE by Edward Carey
’Edward Carey’s LITTLE is one of the most original historical novels of the year. Illustrated with the author’s unsettling, black-and-white drawings, it is inspired by the early life of Marie Grosholtz, better known as Madame Tussaud, although it is filled with Carey’s own vivid imaginings… By turns macabre, funny, touching and oddly life-affirming, LITTLE is a remarkable achievement.’ — The Sunday Times, Paperbacks of the Year

LOWBORN by Kerry Hudson
A Book of the Year for the Book Shambles podcast

‘[Kerry’s] writing is bold, beautiful, honest and sometimes painful to read. It gets my vote because Kerry illustrates the realities of what austerity in the UK does to people. At a time when people are relying on food banks, facing homelessness and struggling with cuts – it’s an essential read.’ — Stylist, The Decade’s 15 Best Books by Remarkable Women Authors

‘The power imbalance in Kerry Hudson’s memoir, LOWBORN, is both individual – a childhood surrounded by chaotic, often substance-altered adults – and societal. For her, the combination meant: “1 single mother; 2 stays in foster care; 9 primary schools; 1 sexual abuse child protection inquiry; 5 high schools; 2 sexual assaults; 1 rape; 2 abortions; my 18th birthday.” Also occasional homelessness and eight out of 10 on the Adverse Childhood Experiences scale. She escaped into the middle-class world of novel writing; in LOWBORN she returns, a refugee afflicted with survivor guilt, looking for memories and raging at how little has changed.’ — Guardian, Best Biography and Memoirs of 2019

‘A frank, personal story of Britain’s impoverished hidden millions.’ — Metro, Most Revealing Memoirs and Autobiographies of 2019

‘If there were any justice in the world, there would be a copy of Hudson’s powerful examination of her impoverished upbringing and why it continues to resonate under every politician’s Christmas tree.’  —iNews, Books of the Year 2019

‘In a society which often prefers to look in the opposite direction, Kerry Hudson's LOWBORN is an essential tour-de-force unravelling the realities of being born working class in Britain. Dubbed 'one of the most important books of the year' by the Guardian, LOWBORN is by turns an indictment of the UK's failing welfare state, and a humorous, heart-warming homage to the resilience of the human spirit. Read it, learn from it and pass it on.’ — Penguin, 10 of the Best VINTAGE Books of 2019

Peter James
Number 40 in The Bookseller’s list of the Top 50 highest earning authors of the year.

SWIMMING IN THE DARK by Tomasz Jedrowski
‘The overwhelming SWIMMING IN THE DARK by Tomasz Jedrowski, a young Polish author who writes rather miraculously in English, of which he has magisterial and frankly, Conradian command.’ — Sebastian Barry, Guardian, Best Books of the Year 2019

THE SCARFOLK ANNUAL by Richard Littler
‘This is the blackest of black humour.’ — Daily Mail, The Year’s Most Essential Books 2019

HIS BLOODY PROJECT by Graeme Macrae Burnet
‘If there is anything better than a historical novel, it has to be a historical crime novel, and Burnet proves himself a bit of a master of the genre with HIS BLOODY PROJECT… Multiple perspectives make this novel more twisty and turny than it already is, and although Burnet was an unexpected addition to the Man Booker Prize shortlist, this book more than earns its place. Masquerading as true crime – one of the most popular genres of the decade – it is also a work of strong literary merit, set in a community and a time that doesn’t get too much attention from authors who aren’t part of the Scottish literary scene. Burnet contributes to his own literary heritage with this novel, and honestly it also just a really cracking read.’ — Cultured Vultures, 10 Best Historical Novels of the 2010s

THE WILD REMEDY by Emma Mitchell
’A beautifully illustrated journey through the year, focussing on how nature and the outdoors can help our mental well being. Written with wisdom and kindness, and centred on Emma Mitchell’s own experiences, this is for anyone who loves learning more about the world around us, and for those who seek a way to help an unquiet mind. This book is a joy to own, and I cannot think of anyone whose life would not be a better place for reading it.’ — Joanna Cannon, Waterstones, Top 5 Reads of 2019

SHADOWPLAY by Joseph O’Connor
‘SHADOWPLAY is an absolutely magnificent book. It's not just a portrait of Bram Stoker, but a novel of the here and now. This is one of the best books of the year, anywhere.’ – Column McCann, The Irish Independent, Books of the Year

‘SHADOWPLAY has an extraordinary sense of the period and, using shifting scenes and changing perspectives, displays a brilliant ear for tone and nuance, and a wonderful talent for evoking and creating drama.’ – Sebastian Barry, Irish Independent, Books of the Year

‘A book inspiring deepest gratitude and admiration was Joseph O’Connor’s SHADOWPLAY, whose immaculate sentences were engines of the sometimes strange inner and outer reality of Bram Stoker and Henry Irving.’ — Sebastian Barry, Guardian, Best Books of the Year 2019

‘Resurrecting Victorian theatre in all its gaudy wizardry, this novel throws the limelight on three figures: Ellen Terry, the best-loved actress of the age; Henry Irving, its charismatic actor-impresario; and Bram Stoker, friend of both and author of the vampire classic Dracula. O’Connor’s panache and subtlety wonderfully match the gusto and creative finesse of the High Victorian world he dazzlingly evokes.’ – The Sunday Times, Best Novels of the Year 

‘Joseph O’Connor’s depiction of the theatre world of late 19th-century London in SHADOWPLAY is atmospheric and evocative, while he also manages to explore with verve, humour and acuity the public role and inner turmoil of the intriguing Bram Stoker.’ — Diarmaid Ferriter, The Irish Times, Books of the Year 2019

‘SHADOWPLAY by Joseph O’Connor was a glorious romp through Victorian London in the excellent company of Bram Stoker, Ellen Terry, Sir Henry Irving and the Lyceum Theatre. I believed every word of this fictionalised account of their relationship.’ — Liz Nugent, The Irish Times, Books of the Year 2019

‘I thoroughly enjoyed Joseph O’Connor’s SHADOWPLAY, which offers a dramatic and sensual insight into the lives of Bram Stoker and Henry Irving when they were working alongside each other at the Lyceum Theatre in 1870s London. O’Connor inhabits his characters with all the intensity of a method actor, re-creating an extraordinary world of creativity and self-doubt.’ — John Boyne, The Irish Times, Books of the Year 2019

‘GHOST LIGHT, Joseph O’Connor’s exquisite reimagining of Synge’s love affair with Molly Allgood, did not get the recognition it deserved. Not so SHADOWPLAY, his brilliant portrayal of Bram Stoker’s intense relationships with Henry Irving and Ellen Terry, a witty, wry, astute and tender delight.’ — Martin Doyle, The Irish Times, Books of the Year 2019

‘Now on the shortlist for the Costa Fiction Book of the Year, SHADOWPLAY is a fabulous, atmospheric jaunt back in time to Victorian London's West End, when Bram finds new inspiration and we watch as the immortal Dracula begins to take shape. An unmissable, colourful read about love, performance and creativity, you will practically be able to smell the greasepaint.’ — Penguin, 10 of the Best VINTAGE Books of 2019

‘It’s a book that totally swept me away to that lovely Victorian time in London, moonlight and fog – the atmosphere of it. He paints the canvas so well. You’re with Bram Stoker in the attic of the Lyceum Theatre where he was writing Dracula surrounded by all these ghost stories and the monstrous ego of Sir Henry Irving. Bram must have used Irving as inspiration for Dracula – he comes across as a really insecure monster in the book. It has comical flourishes as well because Oscar Wilde makes a cameo, which is very funny. You have some crazy tantrums by actors. It’s a bit like MOULIN ROUGE meets DRACULA. I absolutely loved it.’ — Oliver Callan, Irish Examiner, Well Known Figures Tell Us About Their Favourite Books of 2019

THE ’D’ MONOLOGUES by Kaite O’Reilly
 Welsh Books – The Best of 2019 in Wales Arts Review

 

BOOKS TO READ IN 2020

ALLIGATOR & OTHER STORIES by Dima Alzayat
‘This rich short story collection exploring gender, identity, family and inheritance packs an emotional punch. Often told through the lens of everyday scenarios, the stories evoke displacement in a variety of ways: as a Syrian, as an Arab, as an immigrant and as a woman. While each story is different, they’re underpinned by experiencing “otherness”.’ — Cosmopolitan, 49 New Books by Black and POC Authors You’ll Be Reading in 2020

LOVE IN COLOUR: MYTHICAL TALES FROM AROUND THE WORLD, RETOLD by Bolu Babalola
‘In these 18 stories, writer and columnist Bolu Babalola retells love stories with a twist: she (thankfully) modernises the stories by removing sexism, racism and violence from these tales. Spanning Nigerian folktales, Greek myths to ancient tales from South Asia, these tales of romance and desire move across perspectives, continents and genre from the historic to current.’ — Cosmopolitan, 49 New Books by Black and POC Authors You’ll Be Reading in 2020

THE SWALLOWED MAN by Edward Carey
‘Edward Carey’s LITTLE (about the Life of Madame Tussaud) was a bit of a hit. This new one imagines the experiences of Pinocchio’s father, Geppetto, during the years he spent trapped in the belly of a shark.’ — The Times, Best Books of 2020

SWIMMING IN THE DARK by Tomasz Jedrowski
‘Imagine CALL ME BY YOUR NAME set in Communist Poland and you'll get a sense of Jedrowski's moving debut about a consuming love affair amidst a country being torn apart.’ — The Oprah Magazine, 31 LGBTQ Books That'll Change the Literary Landscape in 2020

THE LAST HUNT by Deon Meyer
‘The indefatigable detective duo of Benny Griessel and Vaughn Cupido has returned in this latest blockbuster adventure from Deon Meyer… You’ll enjoy the suspense and thrills of this runaway train of a mystery.’ — CrimeReads, Most Anticipated Crime Books of 2020

BOBBY MARCH WILL LIVE FOREVER by Alan Parks
Scottish Book Trust, 30 Scottish novels to look out for in 2020