Category Archives: The Agency

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Muddle and Mo

Lovable characters Muddle and Mo are bound for the US

Rights for MUDDLE & MO picture book have been sold to Clarion in the US, for publication in Spring 2017.

Muddle is a slightly confused yet enthusiastic little duckling who always has lots and lots of questions. Mo is a long-suffering, not very adventurous white goat who has lots of patience. They are best friends, but Muddle is rather confused about what type of animals they both are. Fortunately, during the course of their walk together Mo helps Muddle get his duck identity sorted out.

Nikki Slade Robinson has been an illustrator and author for many years. In between working on her stories, she actually raised a duck and a goat, who both thought they were human and part of the family. In searching for worms for her duck, or the juiciest dandelions for her goat, Nikki got inspiration for this beautiful story of friendship.

The deal was negotiated by Aoife Lennon Ritchie of the Lennon-Ritchie Agency on behalf of Duck Creek Press, New Zealand.

8 June 2015

Karretjie MenseCarol Campbell’s sumptuous novels ‘n Huis vir Esther and Karretjiemense have been optioned by legendary South African film maker Koos Roets in a co-production arrangement with distinguished theatre director Andre Stolz.

The directors intend to shoot both films back to back. Mr. Roets will direct ‘n Huis vir Esther and act as Director of Photography on Karretjiemense. Mr. Stolz will direct Karretjiemense, and act as production manager on ‘n Huis vir Esther.

Mr. Roets has been a formidable figure in South Africa’s film industry for 51 years, during which he has won an impressive 33 awards, mostly for directing and cinematography. It will be wonderful to see his collaboration with Mr. Stolz, is a well known director, producer and actor. Both men are celebrated for being ‘hands on’ and very passionate about their projects, and have adapted the material themselves.

Author, Carol Campbell is known for crafting heartbreaking stories which are simultaneously poignant and hopeful. She has a masterful ability to inflict and build tension, and to create characters with voices that ‘take hold of you… and never let go.’ Taking her work to screen presents a beautiful challenge for any filmmaker.

The deal for the film rights was negotiated by The Lennon-Ritchie agency on behalf of Penguin Random House South Africa.

Fred Strydom’s post-apocalyptic novel, THE RAFT, to be published in the United States.

4 June 2015

The RaftPublishing rights for THE RAFT, Fred Strydom’s highly anticipated debut novel, have just been sold to SkyHorse Publishing in North America.

The novel was published by Umuzi in South Africa at the beginning of April, and was the subject of a multi-party auction, with SkyHorse securing the rights just ahead of the London Book Fair. The deal was negotiated by the Lennon-Ritchie Agency on behalf of Umuzi.

THE RAFT is set in a world of civilizational collapse, following a single devastating moment where humankind collectively loses its memory. For the novel’s main character, Kayle Jenner, all that is left of his past are the haunting visions of a boy he believes to be his son. Jenner embarks on a voyage across a broken world to find the boy. What he discovers on his journey is breathtaking.

Editor Cory Allyn of Skyhorse Publishing described the spellbinding novel as: “Lost meets Life of Pi meets The Road.”

Watch the captivating book trailer here

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Justin Fox The Marginal Safari

‘I’ve been craving the road for some time,’ writes Justin Fox, odd words for this most seasoned of travel writers. But there is more to it: ‘Restless, anxious about an uneventful slide into my late 30s…’ And thus begins ten thousand kilometres around the edge of the Republic. Hugging the comforts which distance offers agitated souls, he bears east from Cape Town. This is fatherland, and for Justin his father’s land, which the famous architect Revel Fox has marked as much as he had shaped his son s own identity. Justin tarries at outposts and towns; he skips entire cities to favor the off-beat treasures of characters fashioned less by convention than by their own battles against nature or circumstance. Back home his dad is fighting cancer. Having travelled with acute observation he reports like a novelist, stringing together scenes, pictures, communities and characters to form a totality of what South Africa is today as seen from its margins: a sad, exciting clash of histories and stories.

Click here for Justin Fox’s website

Click here to buy his books

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Justin Fox Under The Sway

Bewitched by Mozambique’s dazzling beauty, its alluring architecture, multi-hued seascapes, rambunctious markets and harbours with antiquated sailing craft, travel writer Justin Fox set out to capture all of these in his latest book, a hardcover, full-colour photographic feast accompanied by a compelling text.

Click here for Justin Fox’s website

Click here to buy the book