PMJ signs two historical books from Harding

Penguin Michael Joseph has bought two books from prize-winning historical author Thomas Harding.

Publisher Alan Samson secured world all-language rights from James Pullen and Sarah Chalfant at the Wylie Agency. The books, Murder in Florence and The House on the Canal, will be published in 2025 and 2027 respectively. 

The publisher said: “Murder in Florence tells how at 7 a.m. on 3rd August 1944, a unit of German soldiers arrived at Il Focardo, a villa outside Florence. This was the home of Robert Einstein, the first cousin of the famous scientist Albert Einstein. Robert was in hiding, less than one kilometre away. The house, however, was not empty. Inside were Robert’s wife Nina, his daughters Luce and Cici and nieces Lorenza and Paola. Twelve hours later, Nina, Luce and Cici were brutally murdered by the Germans. The following day, British troops arrived in the area, pushing the German forces away from Florence to the north. A murder investigation was launched, but the perpetrators were never found.  

“Murder in Florence will try and answer a number of questions. Who killed Nina, Luce and Cici Einstein? What impact did the tragedy have on the surviving members of the family? And why did it take so long for the German and Italian governments to re-examine this case?” 

The background to the mystery is Italy during the Second World War: the rise of Mussolini and the partisans who resisted, the persecution of the Jews, and Italy’s response to this difficult period of history. Set against the backdrop of Florence, themes explored include memory, the aftermath of trauma, the pursuit of justice and family secrets. 

The second book, The House on the Canal – Anne Frank and 400 Years of Dutch History, is the story of one of the most famous buildings in the world, the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. The publication and promotion of this book will be supported by the Anne Frank House foundation which manages the Anne Frank House. 

Harding “compellingly relates the 400 years of tumultuous history it witnessed up until the present, including the period when the Frank family hid in the secret annexe”, PMJ said. 

“The story intercuts Frank’s time at the house from 1942 to 1944 with the history of the house, The publisher added. “We see her relationships with her parents and sister, her crush on another of the hideaways Peter, the writing of her diary, the treatment of Jews by the Nazis, and ultimately the arrest. The second strand starts with a peaceful plot of farmland just outside the city of Amsterdam, moving to the construction of the Prinsengracht canal and the building of the house alongside.” Next, it describes the personal stories of the various occupants of the house including an explorer and a merchant who profits from slavery, among others. 

Major events are explored: the Dutch Golden Age, slavery, the Plague, the Great Frost, the Napoleonic wars, the First World War, the Nazi occupation and persecution of the Jews, the liberation by the Allies as well as the Anne Frank story.  

Harding is the bestselling author of Hanns and Rudolf (Windmill), which won the JQ-Wingate Prize and The House by the Lake (William Heinemann). His books have been translated into 18 languages.

The author, who is based in Hampshire, said: “I am excited to be working on these two books. I believe that these stories are both historically important and relevant to today. I am delighted to be working with Alan Samson and the team at Penguin Michael Joseph. Alan is a brilliant editor, we have worked extremely well together, so I am really looking forward to reuniting. As for Penguin Random House, this is where I started my career, it is simply wonderful to be back.” 

Samson commented: “It is a special pleasure to reunite Thomas Harding with Penguin and to be able to work closely with him again. As Murder in Florence will prove, he is a master of historical true crime, and I would say that comparable books are The Devil in the White City [Bantam] by Erik Larson and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil [Sceptre] by John Berendt. On the other hand, The House on the Canal will be a brilliantly realised history and depiction of one of the most heart-rending buildings in the world: the 400-year-old Anne Frank House and its most famous occupant.”