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Bloomsbury triumphs in 16-way auction for Layal Liverpool’s book on medical racism
Bloomsbury has won a 16-way auction for Systemic, a "groundbreaking" investigation into how racism harms health by science journalist Layal Liverpool.
Head of Bloomsbury Trade Alexis Kirschbaum and editorial director Jasmine Horsey acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Will Francis at Janklow & Nesbit. In the US, North American rights were sold to editorial director Alessandra Bastagli at Astra House in a pre-empt. Rights have also sold in Germany to Aufbau Verlag and in the Netherlands to Atlas Contact.
Liverpool is a journalist whose work spans technology, physics, the environment and health, with a focus on inequalities in science, health and medicine. Before moving into journalism, Liverpool worked as a biomedical researcher at University College London and the University of Oxford, and gained a PhD in virology and immunology from the University of Oxford. This is her first book and will publish in the UK on 6th June and on 18th June in the US.
"Systemic uncovers the insidious impact of systemic racism on our health, and provides a framework for a way forwards," the synopsis says. "From cardiovascular disease to viruses, cancer to mental illness, Liverpool delves into the reasons racial health disparities exist and reveals that diseases are not ’great equalisers’ – not when you live in an unequal society."
Liverpool said: "Systemic is the culmination of my years-long investigation into the shocking and insidious ways in which racism harms human health globally, and exploration of how we can tackle the problem to create a fairer and healthier world."
Kirschbaum and Horsey added: "Layal Liverpool is a remarkable talent: a science journalist committed to hard data, but also a gifted and compassionate writer. Systemic is a brave and blistering debut borne from both her own experiences and years of dedicated, on-the-ground reporting. We are certain that it is a book that will lead to real, lasting change and could not be prouder to be publishing it."
