Pan Macmillan announces that AJ Pearce’s debut novel, Dear Mrs Bird has been optioned for television prior to it’s April release.
The book will be adapted By 42, whose recent production credits include forthcoming post-war drama, Jerusalem and the upcoming BBC adaptation of Watership Down.
The publishers summary: ‘London, 1941. Emmeline Lake and her best friend Bunty are trying to stay cheerful despite the Luftwaffe making life thoroughly annoying for everyone. Emmy dreams of becoming a Lady War Correspondent and when she spots a job advertisement in the newspaper she seizes her chance – but after a rather unfortunate misunderstanding, she finds herself typing letters for the formidable Henrietta Bird, the renowned agony aunt of Woman’s Friend magazine.
Mrs Bird is very clear: letters containing any form of Unpleasantness must go straight into the bin. But as Emmy reads the desperate pleas from women who may have Gone Too Far with the wrong man, or can’t bear to let their children be evacuated, she decides the only thing for it is to secretly write back . . .
Irresistibly funny and enormously moving, Dear Mrs Bird by AJ Pearce is a love letter to the enduring power of friendship, the kindness of strangers and the courage of ordinary people in extraordinary times.’
Eleanor Moran at 42, says, “As soon as we ‘met’ Emmy – the infectiously witty and empathetic lead of AJ Pearce’s sensational debut novel Dear Mrs Bird – we knew her story was perfect to play out on screen. We love how utterly contemporary Emmy feels, as she fights to establish herself as a working woman in the distinctly masculine world of newspapers. As she immerses herself in the unexpected role of agony aunt, we went on the journey with her, beguiled and entertained in equal measure. Full of timeless wisdom about love and life, we know the book will entertain and delight its readers, and we believe its viewers too!”
Dear Mrs Bird will be published in hardback, ebook and audiobook on 5th April 2018.
Via Pan Macmillan
The Book to Screen Club 