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Rust shines for S&S

20.03.08 Graeme Neill

Simon & Schuster has snapped up American Rust, a début novel by former hedge fund trader turned construction worker Philipp Meyer. The deal, for UK and Commonwealth excluding Australia rights, was struck with Peter Straus at Rogers, Coleridge & White, acting on behalf of Esther Newberg at International Creative Management in New York. S&S will publish in hardback next spring.

American Rust is set in steel country, around 40 miles outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It charts the tale of friends Billy Poe and Isaac English. Isaac is about to leave for California when he gets caught up in a bar-room brawl and his assailant is killed. While the police suspect the hot-tempered Billy, it is in fact the unassuming Isaac who killed his attacker. The story is told from the perspectives of Billy and Isaac, Billy’s mother Grace and Isaac’s sister Lee, and the police chief who is involved with Grace.

S&S publishing director Suzanne Baboneau described the novel as "an extraordinary début". "His writing brings to mind Richard Ford, Pete Dexter, even Cormac McCarthy," she said.

Cindy Spiegel at Spiegel & Grau acquired US rights, Allen & Unwin is publishing the book in Australia and the book has also been sold into Germany, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Israel and Greece.

Rights deal Simon & Schuster Graeme Neill

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