B.J. Novak signs with Penguin Young Readers Group to Publish Picture Book With No Pictures
New York, NY — Writer and actor B.J. Novak will publish a ground-breaking new “picture book” with Penguin Young Readers Group that reimagines storytelling for a young audience. THE BOOK WITH NO PICTURES, scheduled for publication in fall of 2014, turns the notion of the picture book on its head, by delivering a text-only story book for young children.
Designed to make any reader into an extraordinary storyteller, THE BOOK WITH NO PICTURES is packed with the type of warm and playful humor that will appeal to fans of The Monster at the End of This Book and Press Here. This is the first of two picture books Novak has signed with Dial, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers Group. The deal was brokered by agent Richard Abate and Lauri Hornik, President and Publisher of Dial Books. Dial has world English rights.
Lauri Hornik said, “This book is good-natured, goofy fun from start to finish, and I can’t imagine any kid who wouldn’t beg to have it read over and over again. B.J. has created something brand new and rambunctiously clever. It has made all of us at Penguin quite giddy.”
B.J. Novak explained: “I wanted to write a book that would introduce the youngest of kids to the idea that words can be their allies — that the right words can be as fun, exciting, and ridiculous as any pictures. Also, I can’t draw.”
B.J. Novak will release his first book, One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories, through Knopf in February 2014. Selections from the book have been serialized by the New Yorker, Playboy, and Zoetrope, among other publications.
Novak is well known for his work on NBC’s Emmy Award-winning comedy series The Office as an actor, writer, director, and executive producer. He is also known for his work as a standup comedian and his performances in motion pictures such as Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds and Disney’s Saving Mr. Banks. He is a graduate of Harvard University with a degree in English and Spanish literature.
