Rodale Books’ Adult nonfiction will be part of the Crown Publishing Group, as an imprint of its Illustrated and Lifestyle division, comprised of the Harmony, Ten Speed Press, and Clarkson Potter publishing programs, overseen by Aaron Wehner, Senior Vice President, Publisher, Clarkson Potter, Ten Speed Press, and Harmony Books. Diana Baroni, Vice President, Editorial Director, Harmony Books, will be responsible for Rodale Books. The Rodale Kids imprint, which made its debut in Fall 2017, will be taken on by Random House Children’s Books, led by Barbara Marcus, President and Publisher. Mallory Loehr, Senior Vice President, Publisher, Random House Books for Young Readers Group, will be responsible for Rodale Kids.

Under the leadership of several generations of the Rodale family, Rodale Books has been publishing authoritative and bestselling titles in the wellness, lifestyle, fitness, and cookbook categories for more than 75 years. Its many life-changing works include AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH by Al Gore; Dr. David Kessler’s THE END OF OVEREATING; Lewis Howes’s THE SCHOOL OF GREATNESS; Jessica Alba’s THE HONEST LIFE;  Maria Rodale’s ORGANIC MANIFESTO; RUN FAST, EAT SLOW by Shalane Flanagan and Elyse Kopecky; and THE BULLETPROOF DIET by Dave Asprey. Among its popular series are THUG KITCHEN, WHEAT BELLY, and THE SOUTH BEACH DIET, along with trade titles from Prevention, Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Runner’s World, and its other iconic magazine and online brands. Penguin Random House will be acquiring over 100 frontlist titles from Rodale Books and the Rodale Kids imprint, and over 2,000 backlist titles.

Markus Dohle, CEO, Penguin Random House, said: “With our acquisition of Rodale Books and its impressive frontlist and backlist, we continue to grow the Penguin Random House portfolio of award-winning and bestselling titles. Our exceptional publishing teams at both Crown Publishing Group and Random House Children’s Books look forward to building upon Rodale Books’ decades of success and supporting its distinguished authors and their books for decades more.”

Maya Mavjee, President and Publisher, Crown Publishing Group, said: “I am thrilled to have the Rodale Books Adult publishing program join the Crown Publishing Group. Its rich history as a prominent publisher of lifestyle and wellness titles complements our Harmony Books list perfectly. Bringing Harmony and Rodale together builds a powerhouse within our publishing division as a category leader, and we look forward to welcoming Rodale authors to our Group.”

Barbara Marcus, President and Publisher, Random House Children’s Books, said: “We are so pleased to welcome the Rodale Kids publishing program and authors to Random House Children’s Books. Rodale launched their Kids line with an inspiring commitment to shaping a brighter future for young readers, and this is evident in the focus of their books: encouraging and motivating good habits of nutrition, fitness, mindfulness, and environmental responsibility. The Rodale Kids titles will expand the offerings of our division into areas that we believe are so important for young readers, teens and families today.”

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• AUTUMN by Ali Smith (Pantheon Books) The extraordinary friendship of an elderly songwriter and the precocious child of his single-parent neighbor is at the heart of this novel that darts back and forth through the decades, from the 1960s to the era of Brexit. The first in a projected four-volume series, it’s a moving exploration of the intricacies of the imagination, a sly teasing-out of a host of big ideas and small revelations, all hovering around a timeless quandary: how to observe, how to be. Read NYT review of “Autumn”

• EXIT WEST by Mohsin Hamid (Riverhead Books) A deceptively simple conceit turns a timely novel about a couple fleeing a civil war into a profound meditation on the psychology of exile. Magic doors separate the known calamities of the old world from the unknown perils of the new, as the migrants learn how to adjust to an improvisatory existence. Hamid has written a novel that fuses the real with the surreal — perhaps the most faithful way to convey the tremulous political fault lines of our interconnected planet. Read NYT review of “Exit West”

• THE EVOLUTION OF BEAUTY: How Darwin’s Forgotten Theory of Mate Choice Shapes the Animal World — and Us by Richard O. Prum (Doubleday) If a science book can be subversive and feminist and change the way we look at our own bodies — but also be mostly about birds — this is it. Prum, an ornithologist, mounts a defense of Darwin’s second, largely overlooked theory of sexual selection. Darwin believed, in addition to evolving to adapt to the environment, some other force must be at work shaping the species: the aesthetic mating choices made largely by females. Prum wants subjectivity and the desire for beauty to be part of our understanding of how evolution works. A passionate plea that begins with birds and ends with humans and will help you finally understand, how in the world we have an animal like the peacock. Read NYT review of “The Evolution of Beauty”

• GRANT by Ron Chernow (Penguin Press) Even those who think they are familiar with Ulysses S. Grant’s career will learn something from Chernow’s fascinating and comprehensive biography, especially about Grant’s often overlooked achievements as president. What is more, at a time of economic inequality reflecting the 19th century’s Gilded Age and a renewed threat from white-supremacy groups, Chernow reminds us that Grant’s courageous example is more valuable than ever, and in this sense, “Grant” is as much a mirror on our own time as a history lesson. Read NYT review of “Grant”

• PRIESTDADDY by Patricia Lockwood (Riverhead Books) In this affectionate and very funny memoir, Lockwood weaves the story of her family — including her Roman Catholic priest father, who received a special dispensation from the Vatican — with her own coming-of-age, and the crisis that later led her and her husband to live temporarily under her parents’ rectory roof. She also brings to bear her gifts as a poet, mixing the sacred and profane in a voice that’s wonderfully grounded and authentic. This book proves Lockwood to be a formidably gifted writer who can do pretty much anything she pleases. Read NYT review of “Priestdaddy”