Book Stand: Looking For Alaska, Mockingjay Film Updates Plus Cover Unveils and Book Deals

Book Stand is a blog feature that provides a digest of latest news and information on book releases, book launches, book deals, author sightings, film adaptations and anything else happening behind the world of literature.
AFTER TFIOS AND PAPER TOWNS, COMES LOOKING FOR ALASKA Fans all over the world have long hoped for the film adaptation of John Green's debut novel, Looking For Alaska. It has been nine years after Paramount acquired the film rights to Looking For Alaska. No developments were announced since then. But John Green announced in his Twitter account that award-winning director Sarah Polley will write the screenplay and direct the film adaptation of Looking For Alaska.

So excited to announce that the brilliant filmmaker Sarah Polley will be writing and directing a film adaptation of Looking for Alaska.
— John Green (@realjohngreen) June 26, 2014

Even with the announcement of a writer and director, everyone are madly excited about it. Looking For Alaska's release date has yet to be announced since it is still under developments.
MOCKINGJAY MOVIE CLIP RELEASED "Together as one . . . . Panem today, Panem tomorrow, Panem forever." That is the daunting concluding statement of President Cornelius Snow (Donald Sutherland) as he addresses the nation of Panem while Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) uncomfortably stands still at his side in this first Mockingjay movie clip revealed on The Capitol's official website, TheCapitol.pn. As though addressing the real Panem, it resembles a televised political attempt to convince the people that no one can stand against The Capitol and President Snow. It also features a stylish President Snow with his white fleece blazer and a stylish Peeta in a white suit jacket against a white background with The Capitol's emblem.

Mockingjay is the final book in The Hunger Games trilogy written by Suzanne Collins. It's film adaptation, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1, is set to release sometime in November 2014. The film stars Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Julianne Moore, Jeffrey Wright, Donald Sutherland, and the late Philip Seymour Hoffman.
GAYLE FORMAN'S NEW BOOK, I WAS HERE Fans of Gayle Forman rejoice after the description for her latest book, I Was Here was released in Goodreads. I Was Here is set for publication in January 27, 2015 by Viking Children's.

Cody and Meg were inseparable.
Two peas in a pod. Until . . . they weren't anymore.
When her best friend Meg drinks a bottle of industrial-strength cleaner alone in a motel room, Cody is understandably shocked and devastated. She and Meg shared everything—so how was there no warning? But when Cody travels to Meg’s college town to pack up the belongings left behind, she discovers that there’s a lot that Meg never told her. About her old roommates, the sort of people Cody never would have met in her dead-end small town in Washington. About Ben McAllister, the boy with a guitar and a sneer, and some secrets of his own. And about an encrypted computer file that Cody can’t open—until she does, and suddenly everything Cody thought she knew about her best friend’s death gets thrown into question.
I Was Here is Gayle Forman at her finest, a taut, emotional, and ultimately redemptive story about redefining the meaning of family and finding a way to move forward even in the face of unspeakable loss.

COVERS UNVEILED
Here is a selection of recent cover reveals of upcoming titles in the young adult literature.
RELEASE DATE. February 15, 2015 PUBLISHER. HarperTeen

SYNOPSIS. There's death all around us. We just don't pay attention. Until we do.
The last time Lex was happy, it was before. When she had a family that was whole. A boyfriend she loved. Friends who didn't look at her like she might break down at any moment.
Now she's just the girl whose brother killed himself. And it feels like that's all she'll ever be.
As Lex starts to put her life back together, she tries to block out what happened the night Tyler died. But there's a secret she hasn't told anyone-a text Tyler sent, that could have changed everything.
Lex's brother is gone. But Lex is about to discover that a ghost doesn't have to be real to keep you from moving on.
From New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Hand, The Last Time We Say Goodbye is a gorgeous and heart-wrenching story of love, loss, and letting go.

RELEASE DATE. March 10, 2015
PUBLISHER. Katherine Tegen Books

SYNOPSIS. Wilhelmina has a hundred identities.
She is a princess. When the Indigo Kingdom conquered her homeland, Wilhelmina and other orphaned children of nobility were taken to Skyvale, the Indigo Kingdom’s capital. Ten years later, they are the Ospreys, experts at stealth and theft. With them, Wilhelmina means to take back her throne.
She is a spy. Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate Skyvale Palace to study their foes. They assume the identities of nobles from a wraith-fallen kingdom, but enemies fill the palace, and Melanie’s behavior grows suspicious. With Osprey missions becoming increasingly dangerous and their leader more unstable, Wil can’t trust anyone.
She is a threat. Wraith is the toxic by-product of magic, and for a century using magic has been forbidden. Still the wraith pours across the continent, reshaping the land and animals into fresh horrors. Soon it will reach the Indigo Kingdom. Wilhelmina’s magic might be the key to stopping the wraith, but if the vigilante Black Knife discovers Wil’s magic, she will vanish like all the others.
Jodi Meadows introduces a vivid new fantasy full of intrigue, romance, dangerous magic, and one girl’s battle to reclaim her place in the world.

RELEASE DATE. February 17, 2015 PUBLISHER. HarperTeen

SYNOPSIS. Ever since the night of the incident with Luke Willis, the preacher’s son, sophomore Hallelujah Calhoun has been silent. When the rumors swirled around school, she was silent. When her parents grounded her, she was silent. When her friends abandoned her . . . silent.
Now, six months later, on a youth group retreat in the Smoky Mountains, Hallie still can’t find a voice to answer the taunting. Shame and embarrassment haunt her, while Luke keeps coming up with new ways to humiliate her. Not even meeting Rachel, an outgoing newcomer who isn’t aware of her past, can pull Hallie out of her shell. Being on the defensive for so long has left her raw, and she doesn’t know who to trust.
On a group hike, the incessant bullying pushes Hallie to her limit. When Hallie, Rachel, and Hallie’s former friend Jonah get separated from the rest of the group, the situation quickly turns dire. Stranded in the wilderness, the three have no choice but to band together.
With past betrayals and harrowing obstacles in their way, Hallie fears they’ll never reach safety. Could speaking up about the night that changed everything close the distance between being lost and found? Or has she traveled too far to come back?

BOOK DEALS

Sara Pennypacker

Donna Bray at HarperCollins imprint Balzer + Bray has acquired world English rights, at auction, Sara Pennypacker's middle-grade novel, Pax. The novel tells the story of a boy, the fox he rescued, and their struggles to return to each other in the face of war. Sara Pennypacker is the award-winning author of the Clementine and Stuart books. She is represented by Steven Malk at Writers House. Pax is scheduled for winter 2016 publication.
Aimee Friedman at Scholastic Press has acquired Alan Gratz's young adult thriller, Code of Honor. The novel tells the story of a Persian-American high school senior who goes on the run from the Department of Homeland Security to prove that his older brother--an Army Ranger captured by al-Qaeda in Afghanistan--isn't a terrorist. Alan Gratz is the author of Prisoner-B3087. He is represented by Barry Goldblatt of Barry Goldblatt Literary LLC. Code of Honor scheduled for fall 2015 publication.

Jocelyn Davies

Sara Sargent at Simon Pulse has acquired the North American rights, at auction, to Jocelyn Davies' young adult novel, The Odds of Lightning. The novels tells the story of the lives of four teens intersect by chance during a freak thunderstorm in New York City. When they are struck by lightning, they embark on an epic all-nighter to follow their dreams, fall in love, reconcile the past, and ultimately realize they were brought together to help each other break free of everyone else's expectations--including their own. Jocelyn Davies is the author of A Beautiful Dark trilogy. She is represented by Jessica Regel at Foundry Literary + Media. The Odds of Lightning is scheduled for summer 2016 publication.

Laura Shovan

Wendy Lamb at Random House has acquired the North American rights, at auction, Laura Shovan's debut middle-grade novel in verse, The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary, and another middle-grade novel. The novel follows the story of fifth graders after learning that their school will be torn down and replaced by a supermarket. They take their teacher's 1960s political teachings to heart and fight to save it. Laura Shovan is an award-winning poet. She is represented by Stephen Barbara of Foundry Literary + Media. The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementery is scheduled for spring 2016 publication.
Sarah Landis at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has acquired the world English rights to Cathy Lo's debut young adult novel, This Is How It Ends. The novel tells the story of Jessie who always felt that high school is something she had to survive, until Annie came along. Told through the girls’ alternating points of view, the story tells what can happen when friends choose assumptions and fear over each other. Cathy Lo is represented by Mackenzie Brady at New Leaf Literary. This Is How It Ends is scheduled for spring 2016 publication.
Diane Landolf at Random House has acquired world rights, in a preempt, to Susan Maupin Schmid's One Hundred Dresses in a three-book deal. The novel is set in a fantasy world about a hundred magical dresses in a castle built by dragons, aimed at fans of Gail Carson Levine and Jessica Day George. Susan Maupin Schmid is the author of Lost Time. She is represented by Sara Crowe at Harvey Klinger. One Hundred Dresses is scheduled for spring 2016 publication.

Zoe Sugg

Jhanteigh Kupihea at Atria has acquired the North American rights to Zoe Sugg's Girl Online in a two-book deal. The novel follows a 15-year-old whose relationship with a handsome American boy is exposed after her private blog is discovered, which Atria called a Notting Hill for teens. Zoe Sugg shot to fame in the U.K. via the video-sharing site YouTube in which her fashion and beauty vlog currently has 4.9 million subscribers. Girl Online is set to be published on November 2014 by Keywords Press, a newly announced imprint that aims to release books by established online personalities. A second book is planned for 2015.
Elizabeth Bewley at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers has acquired the North American rights to Estelle Laure's This Raging Light in a six-figure, two-book deal. The novel follows a teenager and her younger sister as they try to deal with their mother’s sudden disappearance. Things become further complicated when older sister Lucille falls for her best friend’s brother. According to the publisher, it is a luminous portrait of two young girls enduring hardship. Estelle Laure lives in New Mexico and received an M.F.A. from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is represented by Emily Van Beek at Folio Literary Management. This Raging Light is scheduled for fall 2015 publication.
Elizabeth Tingue at Razorbill has acquired world rights to Michelle Rowen's new high-fantasy series--A Book of Spirits and Thieves to be the first book--to be written under the pen name Morgan Rhodes, in a three-book deal. The series will be a spin off of her bestselling Falling Kingdoms series that follows two sisters in modern-day Toronto who get their hands on an unreadable book after it’s delivered to their father’s antiquarian bookstore and being sought by a secret society that will stop at nothing to retrieve it. According to the publisher, it provides a portal to a faraway world rich with valuable magic. Michelle Rowen is the author of the Vampire Academy: The Official Guide. She is represented by Jim McCarthy at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management.

Katelyn Detweiler

Leila Sales at Viking Children's Books has acquired world English rights to Katelyn Detweiler's young adult duology--Immaculate to be the first book. The novel follows a pregnant 17-year-old named Mina who shocks her small Pennsylvania town when she claims that, despite her circumstance, she remains a virgin. The assertion elicits a mix of reactions, with some calling the girl a heretic and others believing she carries the second coming of the Messiah. Katelyn Detweiler is an agent at Jill Grinberg Literary since 2010. She is represented by Jill Grinberg. Immaculate is scheduled for summer 2015 publication.
Liesa Abrams at Simon Pulse has acquired world English rights to Suzanne Young's young adult novel, The Remedy. The novel follows 17-year-old Quinn McKee who has the unusual job of helping grieving families with their loss by playing the role of a recently deceased loved one, working alongside grief counselors. The line between work and life begins to blur, though, when Quinn begins acting the part of the girlfriend whom fellow teenager Isaac has just lost. Suzanne Young is the New York Times bestselling author of The Program and The Treatment. She is represented by Jim McCarthy at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management. The Remedy is scheduled for spring 2015 publication.
Namrata Tripathi at Dial Books for Young Readers has acquired North American rights, at auction beating out four other bidders, to Cassie Beasley’s Circus Mirandus, in a two-book deal. Pitched as Peter Pan meets Big Fish, the novel follows a circus that alters the life of a young boy named Micah and his grandfather. When his grandfather becomes sick, he goes in search of the magical circus, and a special performer, that he has only heard about in family stories. What Micah finds is not what he expected. Cassie Beasley lives in Georgia and has an M.F.A. in children’s writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is represented by Elena Giovinazzo at Pippin Properties. Circus Mirandus is scheduled for summer 2015 publication.

Lisa Papademetriou

Kristen Pettit at HarperCollins has acquired North American rights to Lisa Papademetriou’s middle-grade novel, A Tale of Highly Unusual Magic in a six-figure, three-book deal. A fable set in a realistic world, the novel follows an American girl and a Pakistani girl who separately discover a magic book that, when they write in it, connects them to the story of the book’s creation. Lisa Papademetriou is the author of the Confectionately Yours series. She is represented by Rosemary Stimola at Stimola Literary Studio. A Tale of Highly Unusual Magic is scheduled for 2015 publication.
Jessica MacLeish at HarperCollins Children's Book has acquired world English rights to Lindsey Klingele’s debut young adult novel, The Marked Girl in a three-book deal. The book is about a group of royal teens who are ousted from their Game of Thrones-esque world and dropped in modern-day Los Angeles. There, they befriend a street-smart girl who is torn about helping them find their way home, since she’s fallen for the charming bad-boy prince of the group. Lindsey Klingele is a writers’ assistant on the ABC Family show Twisted. She is represented by Reiko Davis at the Miriam Altshuler Literary Agency.

Sources: Cynthia Hand, Epic Reads, Hypable, Jean Book Nerd, Jodi Meadows, John Green, Publishers Weekly, and Publishing Crawl.