HQ buys cookbook from Luminary Bakery

HarperCollins division HQ is to publish Rising Hope, an illustrated cookbook from Luminary Bakery, founded by Alice Williams.

World rights were acquired by senior commissioning editor Charlotte Mursell from agent Charlotte Seymour at Andrew Nurnberg Associates. The book is scheduled for release (hardback, e-book and audio) in August 2020.

Luminary Bakery – which features in the September issue of British Vogue, guest-edited by HRH The Duchess of Sussex – is a social enterprise which supports disadvantaged women in London, including those who have been homeless, in prison, or experienced violence – by teaching them how to bake and helping them build a career. “Encouraging ambition, restoration and second chances, the bakery equips the women with transferable skills for the working world, helping to break the cycle of poverty, exploitation and disadvantage,” says HQ.

The bakery opened its doors in Stoke Newington in 2017 and now has a stall in Borough Market, with another café set to open in Camden in October 2019.

Rising Hope will combine recipes with stories from the bakery, and the women it has empowered.

Mursell said: “I’m so proud to be publishing Rising Hope by the incredible Luminary Bakery. Every single day, the bakery transforms women’s lives and empowers them to reach their potential – I’m thrilled that together we can share the power of baking to inspire, heal and spread hope with readers across the world.”  

Williams added: “We hope that anyone who reads our cookbook, with delicious recipes carefully curated by our community of women, wil be inspired by their powerful stories of courage and passion, and will be eager to experience the therapeutic nature of baking in their own kitchen.”