Her story begins with the extraordinary events of her early childhood in Berlin, dramatically cut short by the rise of Hitler’s Nazi Party in 1933. Judith tells of her family’s struggles with language and money, and what it was like to be a German refugee in London during the war. Of her childhood, the sudden flit from Germany because of her father’s anti-Nazi leanings, her near-death in Switzerland, suddenly having to learn French and then, a year later, English, she says: “Oh, I wouldn’t have missed it for anything!”

The retrospective includes her early attempts at drawing and writing; her sketches and work from art school and her textile designs from her first job. Kerr tells of her life-changing meeting with her future husband, the scriptwriter Nigel Kneale, and her time at the BBC, first as a reader and then as a scriptwriter herself.

Judith’s career as a children’s book writer and illustrator only began after she had children. She would entertain them by making up stories, but it was only when her youngest started school that she decided to have a go at illustrating their old favourite about an importunate tiger.

‘The Tiger Who Came to Tea started off as their favourite story,’ she says. ‘I had always wanted to do a children’s book, but it’s easier when you have children because you know what makes them laugh. I had to redraw quite a lot.’

Over forty years on Judith Kerr is still producing classic picture books. Her rare and wonderful talent is at the forefront in our celebration editions. When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit Celebration Edition, a special hardback edition with a reproduction of the original illustrated cover, will publish on 14th June, the date of Judith’s birthday.

Our lavish retrospective Judith Kerr’s Creatures; A Celebration of her Life and Work offers a fascinating insight into the person behind the books that have been enjoyed by generations.

For a complete list of our Judith Kerr publishing have a look at the presenter below

SJ Watson

Due to the current fantastic publicity for Nathan Filer’s Shock of the Fall, the publication date has now been brought forward from 23^rd to 9^th May.

On top of the nationwide PR campaign, BBC News featured a piece they filmed on the cover design process of Nathan Filer’s The Shock of the Fall on their Entertainment & Arts section, with the video also visible on the main BBC News homepage. In case you missed it click on the image below to watch the piece featuring both Nathan and Senior Art Director Alice Moore taking us through the creation of a beautiful book jacket.

We’re starting to see huge word-of-mouth buzz for this stunning read. Over fifty reading groups have tackled the novel with a number comparing the novel to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

Sandeep Mahal, Programme Manager for The Reading Agency stated, “We’re thrilled with the responses so far. The Shock of the Fall has captured people’s imagination and it’s generated a fantastic discussion online. It feels this book could reach the level of success and engagement similar to The Help by Kathryn Stockett.”

We have A2 posters ready to go out to your shops! Just email independentthinking@harpercollins.co.uk

If you would like a copy of any just email independentthinking@harpercollins.co.uk

Sense and Sensibility by Joanna Trollope

Reason we’re excited: With the combination of two major literary names already garnering global coverage in the press, Joanna Trollope’s contemporary reworking of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility will launch The Austen Project.

Elinor Dashwood, an architecture student, values patience and reliability. Her impulsive sister, Marianne is fiery and creative, filling the house with her dramas and guitar playing, while dreaming of going to art school.

In a world where social media and its opinions are the controlling forces at play, can love ever triumph over conventions and disapproval?

Joanna Trollope casts Sense & Sensibility in a fresh new light to re-tell a wonderful coming-of-age story about young love and heartbreak, and how when it comes to money especially, some things never change . . .

Published by HarperFiction in October

Valley of Amazement

Reason we’re excited: A new novel from the internationally bestselling author of The Joy Luck Club.

A painting called the ‘Valley of Amazement’ is passed along through three generations of women of the same family. Despite vast differences in their upbringing, culture and circumstances, each of the women is drawn to discover the meaning of the painting and the unknown histories of her mother. The story begins in San Francisco in the 1880s when Lucia Hoggs meets a young Chinese painter. She follows him to Shanghai but parts ways with him, and, out of necessity, becomes a courtesan.

A decade later, Daisy, Lucia’s twelve-year-old daughter by the painter, is separated from her mother. She rises to become one the ‘Ten Beauties of Shanghai’. When a fire devastates the village and kills her husband seven years later, she is blamed, and banished to a once-holy place now said to be cursed.

Fourteen years later and Daisy’s daughter, Rose, is now an American journalist. An old woman comes to her claiming she was her mother Daisy’s maid, and that she has safeguarded her mother’s possessions. One item is a painting of the Valley of Amazement landscape. There is a second painting, that of an American woman. On the back is an inscription in English, ‘For Miss Hoggs from Pei Lu Shing. Dark with excessive bright’. Ultimately, Rose will confront the truth that ties these three generations of women to each other.

Published by HarperPress in October

The Fire Witness

Reason we’re excited: The No 1 Swedish bestseller by the author of The Hypnotist and The Nightmare, with film rights already sold and working on the screenplay, international whirlwind Lars Kepler returns with another outing for Joona Linna.

Flora has seen it all, but nobody believes her.
A young girl is dead, someone killed her. She was only fourteen years old and was found in her room at the institution for young women in distress, north of Stockholm.

What Flora does not know is that it is the redoubtable Joona Linna who will be investigating the worst and most puzzling crime of his career. Flora knows only she saw the girl and has seen the crime weapon that nobody can find. She knows what happened, but the police do not believe her. For one simple reason: at the time of the murder, Flora was hundreds of miles away. Yet Flora is certain that she is right. She has seen. Because she is a medium.

The Fire Witness is published by Blue Door in July

HarperFiction presents the Austen Project: a major new series of six novels pairing six global bestselling authors with Jane Austen’s six complete works – Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Persuasion and Mansfield Park.

The Austen Project will launch with the release of worldwide bestseller Joanna Trollope’s reimagining of Sense and Sensibility in October 2013, and will continue with Val McDermid’s reworking of Northanger Abbey in Spring 2014 and Curtis Sittenfeld’s Pride and Prejudice in Autumn 2014.

A dazzling reinvention of a literary classic, from an international bestselling author of impeccable pedigree. Joanna Trollope is the perfect author to launch The Austen Project and reinterpret an endearing and iconic novel.

Joanna Trollope casts Sense & Sensibility in a fresh new light, re-telling a coming-of-age story about young love and heartbreak, and how when it comes to money especially, some things never change…

Watch Joanna Trollope introducing Sense and Sensibility and embed in your own site to share with your customers.

We have proofs available. To request yours just email independentthinking@harpercollins.co.uk

For more information on the Austen Project head to http://theaustenproject.com/

Sense and Sensibility

Joanna Trollope

978-0-00-746176-9

24 Oct 2013

Our reps have been out and about and have seen a number of great Paulo displays and windows, here are just a few of our favourites –

Aldeburgh Bookshop, Suffolk

Blackwell’s, Edinburgh

Muswell Hill, London

If you think you can compete, send in your pictures!

We have posters, postcards, bookmarks and spinners available and there’s a chance to win an ipad mini by answering our simple question below!

Simply answer the following question: How many copies of Paulo Coelho’s books have been sold worldwide? Email your answer to independentthinking@harpercollins.co.uk by the closing date of 30th April.

Manuscript Found in Accra

28th March

Hardback 9780007513925

£12.99 HarperElement

Speak to your rep or click below for the order form

In support of Independent Booksellers Week’s new initiative IBW Bookseller Collectibles we are producing new, collectable editions of much-loved works by three bestselling authors – Judith Kerr, Agatha Christie, and J.R.R. Tolkien – exclusively available for independent booksellers.

David Brawn, publisher of Agatha Christie and J.R.R. Tolkien said: “When a local bookshop closes, it can feel like the death of a good friend. They are favourite places full of favourite things and should be supported. We are therefore delighted to add to IBW Bookseller Collectibles authors who are firm favourites, in beautifully produced editions that are great to read and lovely to own: Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None and J.R.R. Tolkien’s Roverandom are back in hardback for the first time in more than a decade, especially for people who really love collecting books.”

And Then There Were None,

the world’s bestselling crime novel with over 50 million copies sold, will complete the run of more than 80 classic editions of Agatha Christie’s work that fans have been collecting since the series launched in 2005. The book features the original and iconic American first edition jacket design.

And Then There Were None

9780007525300

27^th June

Hardback, £12.99

Roverandom,

J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy story about the adventures of a bewitched toy dog, was the author’s first full-length children’s book, written before The Hobbit. Complete with Tolkien’s own illustrations, Roverandom will be published for the first time as a pocket hardback edition.

Roverandom by J.R.R. Tolkein

9780007523283

27^th June

Pocket Hardback, £8.99

Geraldine Stroud, PR Director for HarperCollins Children’s Books said: “2013 marks Judith Kerr’s 90^th year – and what better way to celebrate than with a special edition of a much loved classic – The Tiger Who Came to Tea – exclusively available from local bookshops. This modern classic picture book is perfect for reading aloud or for small children to read alone time and time again!”

The Tiger Who Came to Tea has sold over two million copies worldwide to date. This classic story of Sophie and her extraordinary tea-time guest was first published over 40 years ago, and this beautifully packaged a slipcase edition is the perfect way to celebrate the timeless appeal of a classic book and the 90^th birthday of author  Judith Kerr.

The Tiger Who Came to Tea

9780007524297

6^th June

Slipcased edition, £14.99

Paulo Coelho is an internationally bestselling author and publishing phenomenon. He is best known for his modern clasic, The Lachemist, which ha sold more than 1.5 million copies worldwide and has been translated into 74 languages. Paulo is also a United Nations Messenger of Peace and one of the most influential people online with nearly 10 million Facebook fans and 6.3 million Twitter followers.

Paulo’s incredible new novel, Manuscript Found in Accra, is a timeless and powerful exploration if personal growth, eveyday wisdom and joy. After lying undiscovered for over 700 years, a manuscript holding the answers to a city’s final questions is unearthed from a cave in Cairo. Centuries before, on the eve of the invasion of Accra, the citizens gathered. A man stood before them and invited the people to share their fears that he might offer hope and comfort. His extaordinary insights on courage, solitude, loyalty and loss were transcibed and passed on.

Manuscript Found in Accra went straight to the top of the bestseller lists in many of the countries in which it was released last year. if you are a Paulo Coleho fan, were inspired by The Alchemist, or have always wanted to read one of Paulo’s books, then this is the ideal time.

We have posters, postcards, bookmarks and spinners available and there’s a chance to win an ipad mini!

Simply answer the following question: How many copies of Paulo Coelho’s books have been sold worldwide? Email your answer to independentthinking@harpercollins.co.uk by the closing date of 30th April.

Manuscript Found in Accra

28th March

Hardback 9780007513925

£12.99 HarperElement

In the new edition of Independent Thinking we are offering you the chance to enter an exciting competition to celebrate the launch of Matt Rudd’s quirky and hilarious new book The English: A Field Guide.

To ensure that you don’t miss out on the chance to win a hamper crammed full of English treats we’d like to let you know about some changes to the publication date of the book and the closing date of the competition.

To celebrate the launch, we’re offering one lucky bookshop the chance to win a hamper crammed full of English treats (think posh chutneys, fudge and other quintessentially English goodies). All you need to do is dress your window in a typically English fashion on publication! We’re envisioning bunting, flashes of red, white and blue, miniature double-deckers, or perhaps one of the scenes that Matt depicts in The English. The book will now be hitting stores on 9^th May, and you’ll have until 9^th June to send us a photo of your window display.

Please send us your photos via email (independentthinking@harpercollins.co.uk) or twitter (@MattRudd) and we’ll award the hamper to our favourite themed window.

Come May 9^th you can join Matt Rudd on a journey deep into the natural habitat of the English, a journey to rival anything David Attenborough did with gorillas, a journey that begins on a sofa (and continues, unflinchingly, into the kitchen, out into the garden, off to work, down to the pub and then on to the beach…and the bedroom). Matt’s fearless anthropological approach leaves no cliché unturned in his attempt to portray the real English. Are we really a nation of binge-drinking, horse-meat-eating, grumbling, tailgating slobs or is there something altogether more beautiful to be found lurking behind the cypress leylandii?

If you want to read a bound proof, email us at independentthinking@harpercollins.co.uk or tweet us @HCIndyThinking

The English: A Field Guide

9^th May

Trade Paperback 9780007490455

£11.99

William Collins

The Machine by James Smythe

From the author of The Testimony and The Explorer comes a Frankenstein for the twenty-first century.

Beth lives alone on a desolate housing estate near the sea, attempting to rebuild her life following her husband’s return from the war. His memories haunted him but a machine that could record memories, preserving a life that existed before the nightmares, promised salvation. Beth knows that memories can be put back, that she can rebuild her husband piece by piece. The Machine is a story of the indelibility of memory, the human cost of science and the horrors of love.

A young talent, vocal within the literary community, you can follow James on Twitter @jpsmythe. The Machine is published by Blue Door in April

Be Awesome: Modern Life for Modern Ladies by Hadley Freeman

Hadley Freeman, Guardian and Vogue features writer and author of the popular ‘Ask Hadley…’ column, reminds the modern lady to ‘Be Awesome’.

Hadley Freeman is like the Funny Female Friend from your favourite movie –the one with the best lines, who’s about 1000 times more interesting than the leading lady (think Kristin Scott Thomas from Four Weddings, not Andie MacDowell). Witty, cool and with a killer dance routine to Patrick Swayze’s She’s Like the Wind – she’s the woman you want to be.

Be Awesome will appeal to women of all ages and walks of life, covering a variety of topics vital to any woman wanting to stay sane in the modern world. From body image and sex, to dating and friendship, via hair and work, Hadley offers a voice of sanity in a frequently un-awesome world. With an attitude that is unfalteringly funny, smart and surprisingly heart-warming, Hadley Freeman is a voice of sanity in a frequently un-awesome world. Be Awesome is published by Fourth Estate in April

Note to Self by Alina Simone

Anna Krestler has been fired and needs a new job. What she doesn’t need is to check her email account for new messages, or click-through to a blog on underwear that prevents cameltoe. But Anna is addicted to the internet, and no matter how much her life-coach bullies her, she can’t resist the lure of the next link.

Everything changes for Anna when she chances upon a particularly cryptic online advert. Her reply is the gateway to an existential adventure. What’s better? To be totally, obviously real, or really obviously fake?

Sure to strike a chord with fans of Lena Dunham’s ‘Girls’, Note to Self is a darkly humorous reckoning of our modern condition – a treasury of spam mail, internships, frenemies and PR hype, and the story of Anna’s quest for the meaningful life she knows she deserves. Note to Self is publishing by Fourth Estate in June.

River of Stars by Guy Gabriel Kay

The international bestselling and multiple award-winning author revisits that invented setting of his acclaimed novel Under Heaven four centuries later – a world inspired this time by the glittering, decadent Song Dynasty.

It is an epic of prideful emperors, battling courtiers, bandits and soldiers, nomadic invasions, and a woman whose intelligence captivates an emperor—and alienates women at the court. When her father’s life is endangered by the savage politics of the day, Shan must act in ways no woman ever has. River of Stars is published by HarperCollins in July.