The Bookseller.com

1st December 2008

Rynja plans Jewel author tour

10.09.08 Catherine Neilan

The UK publisher of The Jewel of Medina has played down security concerns over the book’s release, stressing the novel would be pitched at Muslim readers as well as general fans of historical fiction. Martin Rynja, m.d of Gibson Square, which bought UK rights last week, said he hoped the author Sherry Jones, would be in Europe in time for the Frankfurt Book Fair, before starting a UK signing tour.

UK chains Waterstone’s and Blackwell’s confirmed they would be stocking, but not actively promoting the book. Amazon.co.uk will also sell the book on its website.

Random House US pulled the book from its lists earlier this year citing the safety of its staff and the potential for offending Muslims. Rynja said there was nothing offensive in the novel. "We have had the book read by four Muslim readers and they have all been very positive," he said, adding it was "completely different" to Salman Rushdie's fatwa-inducing 1988 book The Satanic Verses.

The book’s heroine A'isha, the Prophet Mohammed’s child-bride, features in at least another two books due for publication in the next year, Rynja said. "[The Jewel of Medina] is the first popular book of the cult of Ai’sha in the English language and so we want to reach all the many readers who would never think of reading one of the many dry academic tomes on A'isha or Islam."

Gibson Square has Commonwealth ex-Canada rights, and is planning to kick off the launch with a UK print run of 10,000 copies, to be released as a hardback retailing at £16.99 on 16th October.The book is 432 pages long, and the cover will be gold-embossed.

The Bookseller's Association said no retailer had yet approached the industry body for advice, and said it was "up to the individual" bookshop to decide whether to stock a particular book.

"As representative of the bookselling industry, the BA is very much against censorship," said Tim Godfray, BA chief executive. But he added: "Our members will, no doubt, take note of the views of Random House, the original publisher of The Jewel of Medina when considering whether or not to stock the Gibson House edition in October."

Retail waterstone's Amazon.co.uk Blackwell's Gibson Square Home Catherine Neilan The Jewel of Medina Random House US

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