Almost exactly one month after Random House chickened-out of its deal to publish The Jewel of Medina, a novel about the pre-teen wife of the prophet Muhammad, author Sherry Jones has a new publisher and it appears that the book will now be published all over the world.
U.S. publisher Beaufort Books has bought a novel about the Prophet Mohammad's child bride a month after Random House canceled its release, citing fears it could "incite acts of violence."...
The publishing house will release "The Jewel of Medina" in October and a sequel in 2009, Beaufort president Eric Kampmann said in a statement released on Friday.
In a statement, Jones said that she was pleased to have found a publisher "that wouldn't be spooked by controversy."This is good news for the publishing world and I am looking forward to getting a look at the book.
Deals have now been reached with publishers in Britain, Brazil, Italy, Germany, Russia, Spain and other countries, Jones's literary agent Natasha Kern said.
The novel traces the life of Aisha from her engagement to Mohammad, when she was six, until the prophet's death.
I heard about this and thought it was pretty interesting. I like historical fiction, so I wouldn't mind reading it and am glad she found a publisher.
ReplyDeleteI've read that it's already been released in translation in a couple of countries in Europe. Release and then pulled in one. There have been regular articles about it on artsjournal.com.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to get a look at it myself, though it sounds too much like The Red Tent for my tastes.
I'm curious, Danielle, mainly because of what that fool professor from the University of Texas pulled. I figure there's something here that she felt threatened by and I want to read it rather than allow that woman to censor me.
ReplyDeleteC.B., I'm not sure that I'll like the book or its style but I'm definitely going to pick it up and take a look when its finally released here. I think we owe that much to the writer...
ReplyDeleteGiven who picked it up, I'm worried that it ain't that great. If it were a fine work of literature, or compellingly written, something, wouldn't a more distinguished press stepped in, instead of this fly-by-night operation?
ReplyDeleteMy only problem with this publisher is that it's the same one that published that trashy O.J. Simpson book when the original publisher backed out of the deal.
ReplyDeleteLooks like these guys thrive on publishing controversial books...hoping this one is worthy of all the attention.
I'm glad to hear it. And as is usually the case when people try to limit access to books, it only makes people want to read it that much more. I probably wouldn't have given this a second thought, but I'll definitely buy a copy now.
ReplyDeleteBanning a book does pretty much always seem to be counterproductive, doesn't it, Lisa? Gotta love that.
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