Scribe snaps up McCrea's memoir

Scribe has acquired UK and Commonwealth rights to Gavin McCrea's memoir, ahead of the publication of his second novel, The Sisters Mao. 

The memoir, entitled Cells and due for publication in autumn 2022, takes as its starting point McCrea's return to his home country of Ireland, after spending most of his adulthood abroad, to live with his mother in a small flat during lockdown. She is in the early stages of dementia and he is preparing to take on the responsibility of caring for her; while doing so, he begins to reflect on their relationship and how it has shaped him.

Editorial director Molly Slight bought UK and Commonwealth rights from Rebecca Carter at Janklow & Nesbit. She said: "This is an extraordinary piece of work — a raw, intimate portrait of Gavin’s family that touches on mental illness, drug addiction, Oedipian feelings, grief, the complexities of gender and sexuality, and more. The writing is sublime. Having worked with Gavin as a novelist for years, I am so excited to share with readers how he has translated his immense narrative skill to non-fiction."

McCrea’s debut novel Mrs Engels, also published by Scribe, was shortlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize and the Walter Scott Prize, and longlisted for the Guardian First Book Award. His second novel, The Sisters Mao, will be published in September, and has been praised by the likes of Sebastian Barry, Xiaolu Guo, Donal Ryan, and Sara Baume, who said of the book: "Gavin is a writer of extraordinary talent, and I cannot think of a kind of reader who I would not recommend this novel to."

Scribe is supporting The Sisters Mao with an extensive publicity and marketing campaign, launching with a Bookseller cover and a far-reaching superproof mailout in June.