The English Roses Bloom Despite Mixed Reviews

by Diane Roback, PW Daily for Booksellers

In what is billed as the biggest simultaneous multi-language release of
any book ever, Madonna‘s picture book, The English Roses, was published
worldwide yesterday, with illustrations by artist and designer Jeffrey
Fulvimari. In the story, four English schoolgirl friends exclude a fifth girl, because she is beautiful and they are jealous of her; by the book’s end, they
learn not to judge people by their appearances.
Nicholas Callaway, publisher of Callaway Editions,
licensed rights through agent Andrew Wylie, and orchestrated a massive
publication strategy, covering 100 countries and more than 30 languages.
Callaway Editions published the U.S. edition, which is being distributed by the
Penguin Group (Penguin has the rest of the English-language rights). The U.S.
print run now stands at 900,000 copies, and the worldwide figure is 1.4 million
copies. The English Roses was #6 on Amazon’s bestseller list, as of press time.
Events surrounding the launch included a tea party in
London on Sunday and a press conference in Paris on Monday, which included
representatives from all 33 of the book’s publishers. Today Madonna discussed
her book in an appearance on Oprah–only the second children’s book that Oprah has ever featured.
Reached just off the plane from Paris, Callaway called
the worldwide response to The English Roses “very gratifying. I felt
from the beginning that the world would underestimate the project, but what we
are seeing now is a response to the quality of the books.”
According to many reports, the book was selling briskly across the nation.

Both Barnes & Noble and Borders took major positions on
the title. Jenie Carlen, a spokesperson for Borders, called first-day sales
“very good, especially for a children’s book and a celebrity book. If the book continues to sell this way, we will make our plan.” The Gap also took a strong
position on The English Roses, in conjunction with Madonna’s
endorsement deal with that company. In addition to carrying the book in their
stores (the first time for a children’s book), the Gap featured the book jacket
in hundreds of Gap Kids windows, and created a limited-edition tote bag to give out with a $75 purchase.
Sylvia Everitt, children’s book buyer at Hastings
Entertainment, said its stores “seemed pleased” with how the book was moving.
“So far so good,” she said. “We’re really excited about [its being featured on]
Oprah. We had high hopes for it and it’s moving about what we expected.”
Reviews for the book started appearing this morning, and
they were a mixed bag. In a Wall Street Journal review titled “Mama
Does Preach,” Meghan Cox Gurdon said the pictures were “stylish and
eye-catching,” but thought there was too much text for a picture book and too
many illustrations to hold an older reader’s interest. In the New York Daily
News, reviewer Celia McGee called the story “sweet” and “funny,” adding,
“There’s a lot to like.” USA Today’s Deirdre Donahue gave The English
Roses a thumbs-up, admitting that her predisposition to dislike the book
was causing her to eat crow, and pronouncing it a “vital message for girls.”
But David Kipen of the San Francisco Chronicle
didn’t mince words. “Read attentively,” his review says, “[the book] yields an
extremely personal, almost confessional glimpse into the author’s raw feelings.
Unfortunately, those feelings bespeak a persecution complex so narcissistic that
she ought rather have paid readers $100 an hour than charged them 50 cents a
page.” He went on to say that “she can’t write her way out of a paper slipcase.”
Interviewed in the Guardian, author Francesca
Simon commented: “The English Roses has no characters, no story and there is no tension, which is a problem.”

The British tabloid coverage, as one might expect, was
similarly uncharitable. Many papers reported gleefully that at Sunday’s tea
party, when Madonna was asked how she felt about being known as the “next Enid
Blyton,” she replied, “Who’s that?” Blyton being an icon of British children’s
literature, the tabs had a bit of a field day with that quote. (To be fair,
Madonna followed up by inquiring “Is she any good?” When told yes, she said, “In that case, I’m glad to be in her company.”)
On the guest list for the tea party, incidentally, were
several celebrities, including Stella McCartney, Nigella Lawson and Martin Amis.
As reported in the Independent, Amis was asked by a fan at the party if
he too would be writing a children’s book. “I will start writing stories for children,” he replied. “But only when I’ve sustained a colossal blow to the head.”
According to Callaway, several countries, including the
U.K. and France, are already going back to press, based on first-day sales of
The English Roses. “Norway sold out in two hours,” he said. “The
numbers keep going up, and are changing on a daily basis.” The English
Roses is the first installment in a five-book series; each will be set in a
different time and place, with different characters and a different illustrator.
Mr. Peabody’s Apples, book #2, is due out on November 10; the illustrator, as
with all five of the books, will be announced on publication day.