Matthew Syed follow-up goes to Wren & Rook

Matthew Syed's follow-up to his Nibbie award-winning book You Are Awesome has been snapped up by Hachette Children's Group imprint Wren & Rook. 

Dare To Be You by Syed, with illustrations by Toby Triumph, will be published in September 2020. Wren & Rook publishing director Debbie Foy acquired world rights from Jonny Gellar at Curtis Brown.

"Faced with a barrage of conflicting messages both in the digital and the real worlds, many children are struggling with low self-esteem. In Dare To Be You, readers will find out how to forge their own unique path in a rapidly changing world – because the journey to being the person you really want to be starts with understanding your own self-worth," said Wren & Rook. "With You Are Awesome’s trademark mix of approachable text, stylish illustrations by Toby Triumph, hilarious anecdotes and inspiring real-life examples, Dare To Be You shares Matthew’s boyhood journey, exploring the strategies he used to overcome difficulties and grow up happy, achieving his very best."

Journalist and Olympian Syed said: "The response to You Are Awesome from children, parents and teachers has been amazing, and humbling. I passionately believe that the messages about building confidence and resilience have never been more important. I am thrilled to be publishing another book for children aimed at helping them to navigate the complexity of today's world."

Foy added: "You Are Awesome was a game-changer for a generation of children, so to be working with Matthew again on his next title for children is incredibly exciting. More so now than ever before, resilience is a life skill that children need to help them navigate the modern world. We are so thrilled and proud to be publishing another ground-breaking book that will help to build a generation of happy children who are strong on the inside."

Syed, the author of smart thinking titles Bounce (Fourth Estate) and Black Box Thinking (John Murray), won the Children’s Illustrated & Non-Fiction Book of the Year at the 2019 British Book Industry Awards, for his first book for children, You Are Awesome, also illustrated by Triumph. It has sold 181,689 copies since April 2018 through Nielsen, and its companion The You Are Awesome Journal: Dare to find your confidence (and maybe even change the world), which was published by Wren & Rook earlier this month, has sold 36,914 copies.