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Hachette Children's swoops for a two-book deal with Chrimes
Hachette Children’s has swooped for a two-book deal with Penny Chrimes beginning with Wilder, a "captivating adventure" about a wild girl and her falcon with "stunning" illustrations from Manuel Šumberac.
Lena McCauley, senior commissioning editor, acquired world rights from Lisa Babalis at Curtis Brown. Wilder will be published in February 2023.
Wilder is a middle-grade novel following Rhodd, a young girl who arrives in a riverside village from the marshlands with her falcon who constantly circles above her. The publisher continued: "When the rivers begin to die, the villagers turn their suspicion on the outsider: Rhodd. And so Rhodd sets out to discover what is poisoning the wild... to save the village, her falcon and herself."
"Wilder is a beautiful and captivating adventure about love, belonging, the delicate balance of nature – and the wildness within us all," commented McCauley. "It’s a bold new direction for Penny, which showcases her incredible talent as an author. She is able to immerse the reader immediately in the world with her distinctive voice and incredible storytelling power – I fell completely in love with Rhodd and her falcon and can’t wait for readers to meet them."
Chrimes added: "Wilder was a new kind of writing for me – Rhodd the wild child took me by the hand and led me out of Tiger Heart’s sooty streets of London into a new landscape of open marshes and big skies, with her Peregrine soaring above. It has been really fantastic working with such an inspiring editor as Lena McCauley again, with the wonderful guidance of my agent Lisa Babalis."
