Publisher Profile: Nosy Crow
The CBC asks Ally Russell, Marketing Manager, questions about the publisher.
How did your publishing house start out?
Kate Wilson, founder and CEO of Nosy Crow, wanted to bring the beloved brand and books to North America, so Nosy Crow Inc. was born here in the US in late 2022. John Mendelson, former VP of Sales at Candlewick Press, is at the helm.
How many full-time employees does your house have?
There are four full-time employees here in the US. Three team members are located near Boston, MA, and the fourth is in Pennsylvania. Even though there are only four of us, our lovely colleagues in the UK are always ready and eager to work with us and offer guidance. We just pretend like there isn’t an ocean between us.
Which genres does your house prefer to publish?
If it’s a genre that kids between the ages of 0-12 want to read, then we are interested in publishing it. Our current list has books for every reader. We have humorous concept books, heartfelt historical fiction, compelling nonfiction, and more. We’re optimistic about our future with middle-grade fiction.
Which formats does your house prefer to publish?
At the moment, we specialize in board books, picture books, longer, illustrated nonfiction, and novelty. We’re looking to incorporate middle-grade fiction and graphic novels soon.
What are some of your house’s publishing priorities over the next few years?
Our in-house editor is working hard to edit our titles for North American readers, but we aim to acquire books with a strong North American voice over the next few years.
Nosy Crow is also thrilled to be working with the University of Cambridge in an exclusive partnership to create a range of STE(A)M children’s books! The non-fiction books for ages 0-12 will draw on the University’s world-renowned academics and its museums and collections to delight children with exciting and up-to-date takes on information and ideas. The first title will be Beasts from the Deep, written by Matt Ralphs and illustrated by Kaley McKean with additional consultation from Dr. Rosalyn Wade and Dr. Helen Scales, publishing in June 2025 in North America.
Which upcoming titles is your house buzzing about?
We’re very excited about our inaugural list of books and the warm reception that picture book titles like Frank and Bert and Everything Possible have received.
But the calendar is moving forward, which means that we’re already shouting about our fall 2023 titles. We’re eager to place books like I’m Going to Be a Princess and A Whale of a Time: A Funny Poem for Each Day of the Year into young readers’ hands. We’re thrilled to put forth compelling nonfiction books like Goddess: 50 Goddesses, Spirits, Saints, and Other Female Figures Who Have Shaped Belief and Everything You Know About Dinosaurs Is Wrong!
Which of your frontlist titles would be great for a school or public library?
How to Count to ONE: (And Don’t Even Think About Bigger Numbers!) would be a great book for libraries for the obvious reason—it’s a counting book—but also because it’s a hilarious counting book. Every publisher must say that about their counting books . . . but we really mean it. We challenge readers to make it to the end without giggling.
Which of your frontlist titles would be great for a classroom? Which grade?
Granny Came Here on the Empire Windrush would be a great classroom book for grades K-3. The story invites young readers to learn about the Windrush Generation through the eyes of Ava, a child who has been tasked with dressing up as her personal hero for a school assembly. Both Granny’s and Ava’s experiences are relatable. Granny Came Here on the Empire Windrush addresses immigration and stresses the importance of history and intergenerational relationships. It’s a great read-aloud book too, so I hope classrooms and libraries will take advantage of the free audio version of the story provided through our Stories Aloud program. Educators and young readers need only scan the QR code on the book to listen.
Which of your frontlist tiles would be great for an at-home library?
I’m partial to this book because I enjoy learning about all things strange, but The Big Book of Mysteries is a must-have for any at-home library. It highlights the “normal” mysteries (like bigfoot and UFOs), but it’s also a captivating read for anyone who is curious about natural phenomena (like the aurora borealis), archaeology, cryptic ciphers, history, science, and geography. For any skeptics who are reading this—The Big Book of Mysteries addresses hoaxes too.
It’s also a beautiful book to pore over. Yas Imamura’s art perfectly suits the tone of the book, and the neon orange and green inks on the cover are so bright that they practically glow in the dark.
What else would you like to tell us about your house and the amazing work you all do?
We hope we’re doing amazing work. We hope we’re creating opportunities for new talent to enter the industry, both as book creators and as publishing professionals. We hope all readers will feel a sense of joy and curiosity when they spot the crow on the spine of a book at the library or the bookstore. Most importantly, we hope our books create lifelong readers.
Thank you, Nosy Crow!
