Aster to publish CBS news correspondent's memoir of love and loss

Octopus' Aster imprint has acquired When Harry Met Minnie, the first book by Martha Teichner, multi-Emmy Award-winning "CBS News" and "CBS Sunday Morning" correspondent.

The book is described as "a memoir of love and loss, of being in the right place at the right time, and of the mysterious ways a beloved pet can bring people together".

It will publish on 17th September in hardback at £12.99. Kate Adams, consultant publisher, acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from William Clark at W M Clark Associates.

After a chance encounter with an old acquaintance, Martha Teichner's world is changed forever: "As fate would have it, her friend knew someone who was dying of cancer, from exposure to toxins after 9/11, and desperate to find a home for her dog, Harry. He was a Bull Terrier, the same breed as Martha's dear Minnie," reads the synopsis. "What begins as a transaction involving a dog becomes a deep and meaningful friendship between two women with complicated lives and a love of Bull Terriers in common."

Teichner has been a correspondent for "CBS Sunday Morning" since December 1993. Since joining CBS News in 1977, Teichner has earned multiple national awards for her original reporting, including 11 Emmy Awards, an Alfred I duPont Award and five James Beard Foundation Awards. She reported on the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the run-up to the war in Iraq, the death of Princess Diana and the life and death of Nelson Mandela and has interviewed world leaders and other newsmakers, including then-first lady Hillary Clinton.

Adams said of the deal: "I just fell in love with Harry and Minnie, I laughed at their eccentricities and Carol and Martha reminded me to treasure my own friendships and be open to those that may still come in unexpected ways. This book has a touch of magic.”

Teichner commented: “I decided to write this book, because I didn’t want to stop living the story of what happened when Harry met Minnie. I didn’t want to forget any of it, even the sad parts. This story of unexpected friendship, of love, was a wonderful gift, and in the end, it made me and Minnie happy.”