New York City high school teacher Matthew Thomas landed a book deal with Simon & Schuster for his debut novel, We Are Not Ourselves.
Thomas worked on the novel for ten years and inked a deal for “seven figures,” according to Publisher Weekly. Publication is set for 2014. WME Agent Bill Clegg agent negotiated the deal with editor-in-Chief Marysue Rucci. Here’s more about the book:
Set in the second half of the 20th century, the novel is a sprawling portrait of the Irish-American Leary family—Ed, Eileen, and their son Connell—as they move from Jackson Heights, Queens to Bronxville, New York in pursuit of the American dream. Eileen’s unblinking determination to better the family’s status is challenged by her husband’s dedication to teaching—and ultimately, devastatingly, by a diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer’s.