Picador pre-empts Kinsella's Milk

Picador has pre-empted Milk, “a map of motherhood” by Alice Kinsella.

Commissioning editor Gillian Fitzgerald-Kelly acquired world rights, excluding North America, from Marianne Gunn O’Connor at Marianne Gunn O’Connor Literary, Film and TV Agency. Picador will publish in hardback, trade paperback, audio and e-book editions in spring 2023.

The publisher said: “Milk is best described as a map of motherhood, charting Alice’s first year of her little boy’s life. Told in an aphoristic, almost elliptical voice, Milk straddles the seemingly small world of childbirth, care-giving and its attendant challenges with the politicisation of motherhood in her native Ireland. All the while, Kinsella never loses grip of the evocation of her newly discovered world. Tender, beautiful and expertly handled, Milk marks the beginning of the career of a brilliant literary talent.”

Born in Dublin and raised in County Mayo, Kinsella’s work has been published by the Irish Times, Poetry Ireland Review, Banshee and the North, among others.

She said: “Milk is a story of madness, motherhood and finding myself somewhere between the two. When Marianne told me Picador wanted to publish it, I could hardly believe it. I have dozens of Picador titles on my shelves, and to find a home for my book with them is a dream come true. Gillian's enthusiasm and passion is gorgeously infectious and I can't wait to work with her. My endless thanks to my agent Marianne, for the leap of faith and unbelievable kindness, and to everyone at Picador for the incredibly warm welcome. I'm feeling incredibly lucky right now.”

Fitzgerald-Kelly commented: “I couldn’t be happier to welcome Alice to the Picador list. There is so much wonderful writing coming out of Ireland and Milk is a magnificent example. What struck me most when reading is how deftly Alice taps into the soft, gentle and intimate first year of motherhood, while also tackling the reality of having children in contemporary Ireland. I was mesmerised by Alice’s writing; it has a brilliant quality to it which combines a poetic sensibility with urgent, moving and exceptional prose, and I was delighted to see the same level of enthusiasm and determination to publish Alice’s memoir across the wider team at Picador.”

Gunn O’Connor says: “I fell in love with Milk the moment I started reading Alice’s honest, sensitive and heartfelt memoir of her first year as a mother. It has her poet’s sensibility all her over it and I can see it becoming a classic of modern motherhood. I’m utterly delighted that Gillian will shepherd this beautiful, thought-provoking book out into the world with the glorious team at Picador... it is the perfect home for Alice and I know she will thrive in such passionate and creative hands.”