Best known for her work as a novelist, Alice Sebold (The Lovely Bones, The Almost Moon) is switching things up a bit. Europa Editions is launching a new imprint called Tonga, and Sebold will be at the helm. According to Publishers Weekly, “Tonga will release dark, literary books, and Sebold herself is doing the acquiring.”
Since “dark” and “literary” are terms often used to describe Sebold’s own work, we figure she’ll know how to recognize it when she sees it.
Tonga’s first publication (slated for fall 2011) will be Alexander Maksik’s debut novel, You Deserve Nothing. Set in an international high school in Paris, it follows a teacher and two of his students.
Related in BookPage: read an interview with Alice Sebold about The Almost Moon, or a review of The Lovely Bones.
Congratulations to Alice and Alexander! This is fabulously exciting news–about time that an imprint existed for this genre, which has been so marginalized by the corporate houses. Can’t wait to see the development of the list!
I am a first time writer & would like to get in touch with Alice Sebold the new part-time Editor at Tonga Books.
Alice Sebold was wise to pick Alexander Maksik to be her first author. Alexander writes beautifully. I can’t wait to read “You Deserve Nothing!”