The past two days have been
pretty rough. My parents
tried to destroy the world, the houseplant threatened to kill me, and now I find out I'm a human microwave oven.
I had no idea sixth grade would be so stressful.
Joshua Dread
The debut middle grade novel
by Lee Bacon
pretty rough. My parents
tried to destroy the world, the houseplant threatened to kill me, and now I find out I'm a human microwave oven.
I had no idea sixth grade would be so stressful.
Joshua Dread
The debut middle grade novel
by Lee Bacon
International Editions
Joshua Dread is taking over the world!!! [Insert maniacal supervillain laugh.]
Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration. The more accurate thing would be to say that the series is taking over a small part of the bookshelves in the children's section of some bookstores in certain countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Spain, France, Israel, Taiwan and Hong Kong. And while that may not quite merit an over-the-top supervillain laugh, it does at least make me feel very happy.
The book publication process is extremely sloooooow under any conditions. Add to this the delay in acquiring the book internationally as well as the translation time, and it’s clear why the book still hasn’t been published in most of these other countries. However, I have gotten a glimpse of the covers for some international editions, and wanted to share them here.
First up—Australia/New Zealand:
Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration. The more accurate thing would be to say that the series is taking over a small part of the bookshelves in the children's section of some bookstores in certain countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Spain, France, Israel, Taiwan and Hong Kong. And while that may not quite merit an over-the-top supervillain laugh, it does at least make me feel very happy.
The book publication process is extremely sloooooow under any conditions. Add to this the delay in acquiring the book internationally as well as the translation time, and it’s clear why the book still hasn’t been published in most of these other countries. However, I have gotten a glimpse of the covers for some international editions, and wanted to share them here.
First up—Australia/New Zealand:
Australia/New Zealand are the only countries outside North America that have published the book so far. And the publisher—Hardie Grant Egmont—has done a marvelous job of getting readers excited about the series. The cover that they used is actually the original cover design by Brandon Dorman, the illustrator for the Joshua Dread series in the US. Before the book was published here in North America, Random House decided to go in a different direction and asked Brandon to draw up a completely new cover. But I’m so thrilled that the original gets to see the light of day after all.
As for “The Handbook for Gyfted Children”...that was the original subtitle of the book. If you’ve read JOSHUA DREAD, you know why. And if you haven’t read it, then what are you waiting for?!?! Get a copy and start reading now!
Anyway, late in the process, Random House and I opted to do away with the subtitle. But I believe that several of the international editions felt it was right for their markets. And so we have JOSHUA DREAD: THE HANDBOOK FOR GYFTED CHILDREN. I love it!
Next up is Germany:
As for “The Handbook for Gyfted Children”...that was the original subtitle of the book. If you’ve read JOSHUA DREAD, you know why. And if you haven’t read it, then what are you waiting for?!?! Get a copy and start reading now!
Anyway, late in the process, Random House and I opted to do away with the subtitle. But I believe that several of the international editions felt it was right for their markets. And so we have JOSHUA DREAD: THE HANDBOOK FOR GYFTED CHILDREN. I love it!
Next up is Germany:
Hold up? Joshua Schreck? But I thought his name was Joshua Dreck! No, wait—I mean Joshua Drip! No, that’s not it either. But anyway, I’m SURE his name ISN’T Joshua Schreck.
What’s going on?
Well, because Dread has a certain meaning (fear, trepidation, anxiety) in English, the German publisher decided to give Joshua a name that would have the same connotation in German. Makes sense, right?
But you may be asking yourself--Isn’t Shrek that big green ogre guy? The one that was in all those movies? The answer is—Yes! However, that’s “Shrek.” The last name of this book is “Schreck.” Same pronunciation, different spelling.
Anyway, the real point is--WOW!—I really, really love this cover. I mean, really. As you might say in German: “Das ist wunderbar!” (“That’s wonderful!”) Or: “Ich will dieses Buch sofort kaufen!” (“I want to buy this book immediately!” Or: “Ich habe ein Kartoffel in meiner Tasche!” (“I have a potato in my pocket!”). Okay, so you probably wouldn’t say that last thing. But still. It’s a great cover.
Also: the text near the title translates to: "He wants to save the world. His parents want to destroy it."
The German edition, published by Fischer Verlag, will be coming on August 22.
Finally, I present to you the French cover:
What’s going on?
Well, because Dread has a certain meaning (fear, trepidation, anxiety) in English, the German publisher decided to give Joshua a name that would have the same connotation in German. Makes sense, right?
But you may be asking yourself--Isn’t Shrek that big green ogre guy? The one that was in all those movies? The answer is—Yes! However, that’s “Shrek.” The last name of this book is “Schreck.” Same pronunciation, different spelling.
Anyway, the real point is--WOW!—I really, really love this cover. I mean, really. As you might say in German: “Das ist wunderbar!” (“That’s wonderful!”) Or: “Ich will dieses Buch sofort kaufen!” (“I want to buy this book immediately!” Or: “Ich habe ein Kartoffel in meiner Tasche!” (“I have a potato in my pocket!”). Okay, so you probably wouldn’t say that last thing. But still. It’s a great cover.
Also: the text near the title translates to: "He wants to save the world. His parents want to destroy it."
The German edition, published by Fischer Verlag, will be coming on August 22.
Finally, I present to you the French cover:
This time, Joshua doesn’t just have a different last name. His first name is different too. JACK VANDAL. And that’s not the only difference. The entire look of the cover has changed. All the other covers have only featured Joshua. Or in the case of the US edition, Joshua + smoke creatures. But in the French edition, we get a chance to see Joshua, Sophie, Joshua’s parents, and Captain Justice’s robotic butler, Stanley.
Not only that, but the style is quite different. More cartoonish. The other covers were more serious and tense, while JACK VANDAL looks a bit more playful and fun.
As with the German edition, the text below the title translates to, "He wants to save the world. His parents want to destroy it."
The French edition, published by Editions Milan, is coming out on May 22.
It’s been such a fascinating process to see Joshua Dread (or Joshua Schreck, or Jack Vandal) move toward publication in other countries. As I see more covers, I’ll be sure to share them here!
Not only that, but the style is quite different. More cartoonish. The other covers were more serious and tense, while JACK VANDAL looks a bit more playful and fun.
As with the German edition, the text below the title translates to, "He wants to save the world. His parents want to destroy it."
The French edition, published by Editions Milan, is coming out on May 22.
It’s been such a fascinating process to see Joshua Dread (or Joshua Schreck, or Jack Vandal) move toward publication in other countries. As I see more covers, I’ll be sure to share them here!
