Lemony Snicket's Bad Mood to Andersen Press

Andersen Press is to publish a new picture book from Lemony Snicket, the creator of A Series of Unfortunate Events (Egmont).

Andersen Press picture book editorial director Libby Hamilton bought UK and Commonwealth rights to The Bad Mood and the Stick from Snicket’s US publisher Little, Brown.

Illustrated by Matt Forsythe, lead designer on Cartoon Network TV show "Adventure Time", The Bad Mood and the Stick is a "witty, deadpan" tale of the mysterious and unexpected ways that bad moods move through the world. The book will offer "refreshing, thoughtful, and hilarious look at the ways in which a bad mood wreaks havoc as it moves from person to person, leaving an unexpected trail of surprise in its wake", the publisher said, adding: "opportunities for laughter, forgiveness and even love [will allow] young readers to look their bad mood in the eye".

Hamilton said: “A bad mood is as easy to pass on as a cold, but appreciating something as simple as a stick can chase it away. That’s a message we want to pass on to grown- ups and kids alike. And the fact that this is written by THE Lemony Snicket, well, we couldn’t resist. We’re looking forward to sharing this bad mood with the world.”

Snicket said: “The world has gone mad. I have offered Andersen Press a stick and they are publishing it.”

Snicket is the author of 13 volumes in A Series of Unfortunate Events (Egmont); several picture books, including The Dark (Orchard Books); and the book series All the Wrong Questions (Egmont).

Forsythe is the illustrator of the New York Times' Notable Children's Book My Name is Elizabeth (Kids Can Press) and was the lead designer on the television series "Adventure Time".

Andersen Press will release The Bad Mood and the Stick in November with a trade-focused marketing campaign, offering POS to booksellers in the UK and Ireland.