SOLOSON MEDIA

By Rutendo Tavengerwei Genre: YA, Drama Publisher: Hot Key Books A breathtaking teen novel set in Zimbabwe about freedom, inter-generational friendships and forgiving the past.   Fifteen-year-old Tumirai lives with his protective big brother, Mkoma in Harare, Zimbabwe. He's the first albino kid ever to have attended his school and constantly feels like an outsider.   When his brother is invited to go travelling for work, Tumirai goes to stay with their grandmother, Ambuya Thandie. She is scarred, in more ways than one, but her memory is a treasure trove - and her stories of Zimbabwe's war for independence are a long, long way from the history Tumirai has heard before.

By Rutendo Tavengerwei Genre: YA, Drama Publisher: Hot Key Books (UK), Soho Teen (US) Foreign Rights Sales: Brazil Nominated for the CILIP CARNEGIE MEDAL 2019 Selected in the CILIP round-up of 2018 books championing diversity A novel set in Zimbabwe about hope - and its power to heal a family, a friendship or even a nation.   For fifteen-year-old Shamiso, struggling with grief and bewilderment following her father's death, hope is nothing but a leap into darkness.   For Tanyaradzwa, whose life has been turned upside down by a cancer diagnosis, hope is the only reason to keep fighting.   As the two of them form an unlikely friendship, Shamiso begins to confront her terrible fear of loss. In getting close to another person, particularly someone who's ill, isn't she just opening herself up to more pain? And underpinning it all - what did happen to her father, the night of that strange and implausible car crash?   Rutendo Tavengerwei's extraordinary debut takes an honest look at hope, and the grit and courage it can take to hang on to it.   ‘A stunning debut from an unforgettable voice, as epic and full of hope as an African thunderstorm’ LAUREN ST JOHN

by John Williams Genre: Memoir, comedy Publisher: Michael O’Mara Books Foreign Rights Sales: Czech, Russian, Chinese (simplified and complex) and French This isn’t a story about autism. It’s a story about a young boy who happens to have autism, and there is a difference.   John Williams is a stand-up comedian. He is also a single father and full-time carer for his son, who has autism and cerebral palsy. This is their incredible story.   In 2012, John started a blog called My Son’s Not Rainman, a heartfelt and uplifting account of everyday life for him and ‘The Boy’. Following on from the blog’s amazing success, John felt there was still much more of their life, past and present, that he wanted to share. And not only of the challenges of bringing up a child who for too long was just dismissed as ‘difficult’, but also of the joy of living with someone who looks at the world in a unique way.   My Son’s Not Rainman radiates warmth, care and passion, not to mention laugh-out-loud humour, on every page. It is a brilliantly different story about a brilliantly different boy.   'An entertaining and often very funny read. Williams has a naturally comic touch ... [and there] are abundant laughs that will strike a chord with anyone with a disabled child or sibling' - Daily Mail

by W.C. Ryan Genre: Supernatural Thriller Publisher: Zaffre Short-listed for Irish Crime Awards / Crime Writing Included in the 2018 Books of the Year list of the Sunday Express, Irish News and i-Newspaper. "A gripping mystery with a classic feel: And Then There Were None meets The Silent Companions" Winter 1917. As the First World War enters its most brutal phase, back home in England, everyone is seeking answers to the darkness that has seeped into their lives. At Blackwater Abbey, on an island off the Devon coast, Lord Highmount has arranged a spiritualist gathering to contact his two sons who were lost in the conflict. But as his guests begin to arrive, it gradually becomes clear that each has something they would rather keep hidden. Then, when a storm descends on the island, the guests will find themselves trapped. Soon one of their number will die. For Blackwater Abbey is haunted in more ways than one . . . An unrelentingly gripping mystery packed with twists and turns, A House of Ghosts is the perfect chilling read this winter. 'Wonderfully written and a jolly good read' - Sunday Independent 'Spooks, spies and spectres are the order of the day in this rattling good read' - Sunday Express 'An intelligent, absorbing, exquisitely spooky mystery' - Irish Times" MY SON’S NOT RAINMAN by John Williams Genre: Memoir, comedy Publisher: Michael O’Mara Books Foreign Rights Sales: Czech, Russian, Chinese (simplified and complex) and French This isn’t a story about autism. It’s a story about a young boy who happens to have autism, and there is a difference. John Williams is a stand-up comedian. He is also a single father and full-time carer for his son, who has autism and cerebral palsy. This is their incredible story. In 2012, John started a blog called My Son’s Not Rainman, a heartfelt and uplifting account of everyday life for him and ‘The Boy’. Following on from the blog’s amazing success, John felt there was still much more of their life, past and present, that he wanted to share. And not only of the challenges of bringing up a child who for too long was just dismissed as ‘difficult’, but also of the joy of living with someone who looks at the world in a unique way. My Son’s Not Rainman radiates warmth, care and passion, not to mention laugh-out-loud humour, on every page. It is a brilliantly different story about a brilliantly different boy. 'An entertaining and often very funny read. Williams has a naturally comic touch ... [and there] are abundant laughs that will strike a chord with anyone with a disabled child or sibling' - Daily Mail HOPE IS OUR ONLY WING By Rutendo Tavengerwei Genre: YA, Drama Publisher: Hot Key Books (UK), Soho Teen (US) Foreign Rights Sales: Brazil Nominated for the CILIP CARNEGIE MEDAL 2019 Selected in the CILIP round-up of 2018 books championing diversity A novel set in Zimbabwe about hope - and its power to heal a family, a friendship or even a nation. For fifteen-year-old Shamiso, struggling with grief and bewilderment following her father's death, hope is nothing but a leap into darkness. For Tanyaradzwa, whose life has been turned upside down by a cancer diagnosis, hope is the only reason to keep fighting. As the two of them form an unlikely friendship, Shamiso begins to confront her terrible fear of loss. In getting close to another person, particularly someone who's ill, isn't she just opening herself up to more pain? And underpinning it all - what did happen to her father, the night of that strange and implausible car crash? Rutendo Tavengerwei's extraordinary debut takes an honest look at hope, and the grit and courage it can take to hang on to it. ‘A stunning debut from an unforgettable voice, as epic and full of hope as an African thunderstorm’ LAUREN ST JOHN

By James Gould-Bourn Genre: Up-lit, Comedy Publisher: Trapeze (Orion) (UK), Scribner (Simon & Schuster) (US) Foreign Rights Sales: Germany, Italy, Chinese (Simplified), France, Serbia, Japan Danny has lost his wife, his job on a building site, and he is about to lose his home. Worst of all though, he’s losing his son, Will, who hasn’t spoken since his mum died 14 months earlier in a car crash. Danny doesn’t know how to reach him. After seeing street performers in his local park apparently raking it in, he spends his last fiver on a vomit-ridden animal suit and becomes a dancing panda… until something unexpected happens that makes the humiliation of his terrible rhythm all worth it. When Danny sees Will being bullied, he runs over in the panda outfit to save his son, who in turn then opens up to him like he hasn’t for over a year. But Will doesn’t know it’s his dad in the suit, and Danny is too afraid to tell him the truth in case he spoils everything. Keeping Mum is a sometimes laugh-out-loud funny, sometimes sad, always poignant and ultimately uplifting story of a father and son overcoming their grief in the most unlikely of circumstances.