Title: Mr. Lemoncello’s Library Olympics
Author: Chris Grabenstein
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Genre: Middle grade
The second book in a series, Mr. Lemoncello’s Library Olympics has been described as an ode to libraries and literature; it includes puzzles for readers to solve. Just released in January, it has already been nominated for multiple awards and is now enjoying its third week on the New York Times bestseller list for its genre.
When asked what contributed to the book’s bestseller status, author Chris Grabenstein said: “Kids all over the country wanted to know ‘what happens next with Mr. Lemoncello, Kyle Keeley, and the horrible, no-good, stinky Charles Chiltington?’ Since its debut in June 2013, the first book in the series, Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library, has spent over fifty-six weeks in the top ten of the New York Times bestseller lists.
“Last year, I did about 100 in-person school visits and 200 Skype visits with kids all across the country. They all wanted to know the same thing: ‘When is the sequel coming out?’ Now that the second book has been around for a month, the question has changed: ‘Is there going to be a third Lemoncello book?’ To which I can answer yes! Fingers crossed it will become a bestseller, too.”
Jane Friedman has spent her entire career working in the publishing industry, with a focus on business reporting and author education. Established in 2015, her newsletter The Bottom Line provides nuanced market intelligence to thousands of authors and industry professionals; in 2023, she was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World.
Jane’s expertise regularly features in major media outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Today Show, Wired, The Guardian, Fox News, and BBC. Her book, The Business of Being a Writer, Second Edition (The University of Chicago Press), is used as a classroom text by many writing and publishing degree programs. She reaches thousands through speaking engagements and workshops at diverse venues worldwide, including NYU’s Advanced Publishing Institute, Frankfurt Book Fair, and numerous MFA programs.
