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Hachette Children's signs three-book deal with Jim Beckett and Aurélie Lise-Anne
Hachette Children’s has scooped a three-book deal with Jim Beckett and debut illustrator and animation art director Aurélie Lise-Anne. Editorial director Lizzie Clifford acquired world rights to the text from Hannah Sheppard at Hannah Sheppard Literary Agency. World rights to the illustrations were acquired from Gary Swift at Lemonade Illustration Agency. Buzz Sausage Wolf, the first book in the young fiction series, will be published in May 2025, with books two and three following in January and June 2026, respectively.
The series follows Buzz Sausage Wolf, who is keen to win the love of his new family and be the perfect pet – but does this mean "he should be brave like a wolf or silly like a sausage to impress them?" A "funny and friendly" series with full-colour illustrations about being yourself. The publisher has pitched it as "ideal" for newly independent readers.
"Buzz Sausage Wolf has leapt off the page and straight into my heart – he’s the biggest, furriest dollop of lovable fun that I’ve seen in ages," said Clifford. "Jim Beckett has that rare genius for packing every line with wonderfully child-centric humour, warmth and silliness, and Aurélie Lise-Anne’s extraordinarily dynamic gorgeous art brings Buzz and friends brilliantly to life."
Beckett commented: "Writing this series is such a fun way to explore the Big Questions that hound us all, young or old, dog or not-dog: ‘Who’s in charge? Do they like me? What can I get away with? Why is my poo so collectable?’ I am exceedingly grateful to Lizzie and Hannah for helping me coax Buzz away from the wrong lamp posts, and in complete awe of Aurélie’s talent: her illustrations are perfect!"
Lise-Anne added: "It was an absolute joy to illustrate Buzz Sausage Wolf. The characters are so well written and full of heart. When I read it for the first time, the fun radiated from the pages – so I tried to do the same with my illustrations. I love my own sausage dog with all my heart, which makes drawing a hundred pages worth of sausage dogs quite the dream job!"
