David Barnett novel for new Orion Books imprint
Calling Major Tom by David M Barnett
will be published by Trapeze on 18 May 2017
in paperback £7.99, eBook £7.99
Sam Eades, Senior Commissioning Editor at Orion, has acquired World Rights (All Languages) for Calling Major Tom by David M Barnett in a one book deal struck by John Jarrold Literary Agency.
Sam Eades said: “CALLING MAJOR TOM is a very British A Man Called Ove and I’ve fallen head over heels with each and every character. It is the heart-warming and ultimately life-affirming story of a man who has given up on the world, but discovers in the most unlikely way that it might not have given up on him. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you will cheer on all the curmudgeons in your life.”
David M Barnett said: “I woke up on the morning of my birthday to find out that not only had another year of my 40s seemed to have suddenly zoomed by, but to cap it all David Bowie had died. A few days later I saw the astronaut Tim Peake on the news, having become the first Briton to do a spacewalk, and all this made the mental rockets start firing. What if you were so grumpy, so fed up with life, that you literally wanted to get away from it all? And where better to go than space? The flip-side of that, of course, is that while astronauts are doing hugely exciting things up there, the rest of us are struggling along with our day to day lives and problems. Calling Major Tom was born out of wondering what would happen if those two worlds collided – the astronaut in splendid isolation far above the world and a normal family back on Earth. Of course, there’s no such thing as a ‘normal’ family – they’re all problematic and dysfunctional in their own ways. So it’s really about unlikely friendships, facing up to problems life throws at us, and finding a chance at redemption in the most unexpected places.”
John Jarrold said: “This is an exciting new imprint, and Sam Eades’ proactive enthusiasm since she first contacted me and wanted to talk about involving David Barnett has been a delight. David’s writing overflows with warmth, wit and humanity – and this book will use all those aspects wonderfully well.”
David Barnett is an author and journalist based in West Yorkshire. After a career working for regional newspapers he embarked upon a freelance career writing features for most of the UK national press. He is the author of the critically-acclaimed Gideon Smith series of Victorian fantasies, published by Tor Books, and teaches journalism part-time at Leeds Trinity University. David was born in Wigan, Lancashire, in 1970 and is married to Claire, also a journalist. They have two children, Charlie and Alice.
For further information please contact Sam Eades
on 020 3122 7195 or via email: sam.eades@orionbooks.co.uk