DVD Talk Forum - Earth's Children Book 6, The Land Of Painted Caves, March 29, 2011

The Land of Painted Caves, Jean M. Auel’s Sixth and Final Book in the Earth’s Children® Series, to Be Published Worldwide on March 29, 2011

— Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency, Inc., and Crown Publishers Announce Major International Laydown

(May 27, 2010—New York, NY)

Jean M. Auel, whose novels about prehistoric life have won acclaim for their inspired storytelling, meticulous attention to detail, and historic accuracy, has written the highly anticipated sixth and final book in the mega-bestselling Earth’s Children® series.

Titled The Land of Painted Caves, the book will be published in the United States on March 29, 2011, in both hardcover and eBook formats by Crown Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc.

The book will be simultaneously published worldwide, including in the U.K., Germany, France, Holland, Spain, Italy, Serbia, Croatia, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and Japan.

A worldwide announcement was made today. Bantam Books, which holds the rights to all of Auel’s paperback backlist, will publish eBook versions of each of the previous five classic books in the Earth’s Children® series in advance of the international release of The Land of Painted Caves.

Bantam will also publish a paperback edition of the new book in 2012. Auel’s Earth’s Children® is one of the most popular and celebrated book series of all time, with worldwide sales of more than 45 million copies, including nearly 22 million copies in the United States alone.

The series has consistently made publishing history, beginning with the groundbreaking first novel, The Clan of the Cave Bear (1980), and continuing with The Valley of Horses (1982); The Mammoth Hunters (1985), which was the first hardcover novel to achieve a first printing of more than a million copies; The Plains of Passage (1990); and The Shelters of Stone (2002), which debuted at #1 on sixteen international bestseller lists.

The Land of Painted Caves continues the story of Ayla, her mate Jondalar, and their little daughter, Jonayla, taking readers on a journey of discovery and adventure as Ayla struggles to find a balance between her duties as a new mother and her training to become a Zelandoni—one of the Ninth Cave community’s spiritual leaders and healers.

Once again, Jean Auel combines her brilliant narrative skills and appealing characters with a remarkable re-creation of the way life was lived thousands of years ago, rendering the terrain, dwelling places, longings, beliefs, creativity, and daily lives of Ice Age Europeans as real to the reader as today’s news.

Auel’s editor for the book is her longtime editor Betty Prashker. Said Maya Mavjee, president and publisher of the Crown Publishing Group, “The Land of Painted Caves is a brilliant achievement by one of the world’s most beloved authors. Jean M. Auel’s millions of fans, who have been eagerly awaiting the next installment of the epic story of Ayla and Jondalar, will not be disappointed by this stirring and satisfying finale.”

Auel’s longtime agent Jean Naggar says: “Once again, the launch of this latest book in Jean Auel’s unique series promises to be an international extravaganza. Working with this extraordinary author and series from its beginnings has been a great personal and professional pleasure. The Land of Painted Caves is a triumph and a wonderful read.”

All foreign and subsidiary rights are negotiated by Jennifer Weltz, Vice President of the Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency, Inc., New York, NY (212-794-1082).

U.S. audio rights to The Land of Painted Caves have been sold to Brilliance Audio.

The parent company of Random House, Inc., is Bertelsmann AG.