William Collins acquires Anna Brones’ Cold book

William Collins has acquired Cold, an investigation into our cultural, historical and scientific relationship to low temperatures by Seattle-based writer Anna Brones. 

Editorial director Jamie Birkett bought UK and Commonwealth rights (his first acquisition for William Collins) from Vanessa Kerr at Aevitas Creative Management on behalf of Bridget Matzie. Hilary Redmon, vice-president and editorial director at Random House acquired North American rights, with publication set for summer 2026.  

Birkett said: “I had been searching for some time for an original perspective on the fascinating phenomenon of cold therapy, so when Anna’s brilliant proposal arrived on my desk I jumped at it. In reclaiming cold from the lifestyle gurus, Anna celebrates this vital force as something anyone can enjoy, reminding us of our ancient relationship to cold and the extremely exciting new science we are only just beginning to discover. This feels like the perfect book for the new list I’m building at William Collins – sitting somewhere between James Nestor’s Breath, Katherine May’s Wintering and Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass – and I can’t wait to work with Anna and with Hilary at Random House to make a huge success of it.”

Brones said: “Anyone who has a love of cold water swimming or plunging intuitively knows the surge that you feel in your body. It’s no wonder that cold water aficionados are so vocal about their passion. But what is at the root of this thrill of the cold and how can we use it as a lens for better understanding not just ourselves, but the world around us? That’s what I am excited about exploring in this book, underlining that embracing the cold is not about conquering, but about connection.”

Brones is the Swedish-American author of Fika: The Art of the Swedish Coffee Break (Ten Speed Press) and Live Lagom: Balanced Living the Swedish Way (Ebury).