Hodder signs Peston and Koria’s exploration of ‘whether the West has gone bust’

Hodder Non-Fiction has acquired Bust? Saving the Economy, Our Democracy and Our Sanity by Robert Peston and Kishan Koria, which asks whether the West has gone bust — economically, politically and socially, and questions whether there is another way.

Rupert Lancaster acquired world English language rights from Jonny Geller at Curtis Brown. Hodder will publish Bust? on 9th November 2023 in hardback, e-book and audio.

In the book, Peston and Koria will explore key issues that affect us all, the publisher says, such as: how do we simultaneously rebuild prosperity, democracy and social cohesion? If the chaos of the last few years mark the end of the old order as we knew it, what will and should follow? After the banking crisis, the pandemic and Putin’s invasion, how do we better protect ourselves from catastrophic events? Artificial intelligence is changing everything, but is it a threat to our jobs and perhaps to our very existence? Or just the powerful general-purpose technology we need to boost productivity, restart growth and reboot our prosperity?

Peston, ITV’s political editor, said: “We are at that point where confidence in our fundamental institutions has been undermined by leaders who have an uncomfortable relationship with the truth and by an economy that has mainly served the richest. It’s time to abandon pessimism and fatalism and look for answers. Bust? doesn’t have all of them. But Kish and I want to start an important debate, about how to allow us all to hope again.”

Lancaster commented: “The huge success of Who Runs Britain?, How Do We Fix This Mess? and WTF? show that Robert is a trusted guide to the workings of our chaotic world. This new collaboration with Kishan Koria brilliantly demonstrates their ability to not only analyse and ask questions, but also to suggest solutions. Bust? is an important and timely book that we’re very proud to publish.”

Kishan Koria is the editor of “Peston” on ITV where he also creates the channel’s election debates. He is the co-author of Bust? and was the researcher for Robert Peston’s WTF (Hodder & Stoughton).