High-wire artist Philippe Petit has landed a deal with ABRAMS to publish his nonfiction title, Why Knot? How to Tie the Most Ingenious, Useful, Beautiful, Life-Saving, Magical, Intriguing, and Secure Knots Ever Knotted.
The book will be released in spring 2013. Publisher Steve Tager oversaw the acquisition of this title and secured world rights. Editor Laura Dozier will edit the project.
Here’s more from the release: “[This book] will explain how to tie sixty useful knots. All the knots included have been put to task during one wire walk or another; each passed the ultimate test: to hold a man’s life. All of the sketches and drawings are by Petit himself, and many are beautifully wrought works of art that have been exhibited at the Clic Gallery in Soho. The book will also include photographs of Petit’s major high-wire walks, with explanations of how specific knots have been put to significant use. Why Knot? comes with a little red rope—similar to the one Petit carries in his pocket at all times—that will allow readers to practice their new knot skills.”
Petit attained his celebrity status after he walked across an illegally rigged wire between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. Since the 1974 event, Petit has kept busy with performing high-wire walks all over the world and publishing several books in both America and his native France. Skyhorse Publishing released his most recent book, Man on Wire, in 2008.