Sunday book news round-up #2: Booker, Eagle, McKee, Britney and more

Hello there, and if you’re reading this you’re about to get a round-up of book news.

That should be obvious from the title, but if you’re an AI then…I was going to some binary ISBN joke there…but it’s Sunday….
We’re just now seeing that The Eagle Has Landed author Henry Patterson has died at 92, as reported by Yahoo.

Your Sunday news round-up

British author Patterson wrote under the pen name Jack Higgins, and delivered 85 novels between 1959 and 2017.

Patterson sold more than 250 million books, which is frankly incredible. Our thoughts are with his loved ones.

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in other book news, the Metro is reporting on the potential detrimental impact of Prince Harry’s book on some royal relationships. It’s not our place to speculate on any of that, but for those interested in keeping an eye out his book will be out later this year.

For now, he’s believed to have received a £15million advance for the title - which, apropos of nothing, is around the same figure as Britney Spears for her upcoming memoir.

It’ll be interesting to see how each title fares. Anyhow, more when we have it.

Any tennis lovers out there? Ashleigh Barty may have retired from competition, but she has other things going on and has a six-title Little Ash children’s book series on the way.

Clearly, it will be based on some of her own experiences, but there’s no word on a ghostwriter or co-author should there be one.

The first appearance (from HarperCollins) will be in July.

And…if you missed it:

• The six-title International Booker Prize 2022 shortlist was announced

• Tickets for Hay Festival events went on general sale on Friday - roll up, roll up!

• British Children’s author David McKee sadly passed away on Wednesday, at the age of 87

• Britney Spears has called writing her memoir ‘healing’.

• American children’s author Shannon Hale has said that gendered reading bias is fuelled by ignorance.

• 2021 saw an unprecedented number of attempted book bans

• Finally, finally - although hopefully true for many more years yet! - World Book Night is on April 23rd, and you can get all the info ahead of the event.

Have a great rest of your Sunday!