Patrick inks $1.35 million book deal for his autobiography

March 28, 2008 12:29 PM Email| Comments (0)| Text size – +

(John Bohn/Globe Staff/file)

By Matt Viser and Frank Phillips, Globe Staff

Governor Deval Patrick has signed a book deal with a division of Random House that will pay him a $1.35 million advance to write an autobiography that is scheduled to be published in 2010.

Todd Shuster, the governor’s literary agent, said nine publishers bid on the book in an auction, including four "to a very high level."

“They see him as visionary leader and somebody who inspires people, especially young people," Shuster said.

The book will draw upon Patrick's "extraordinary journey from Chicago’s Wabash Avenue to the Massachusetts State House' and offer "a series of lessons and insights on life and leadership," according to the release from the publisher issued today. "Among the subjects he will address are self-truth, grace, faith, courage, and compassion, as well as the importance of forgiveness, and embracing optimism and hope to make good outcomes possible."

Patrick traveled to New York last week to shop his proposal for an autobiography among New York publishing houses, departing the state to pursue the book contract just hours before the House voted down his high-profile casino legislation on Beacon Hill.

William Thomas, editor-in-chief of the Doubleday Broadway Publishing Group of Random House Inc., described the deal in today's release as a “major work of nonfiction.” An unspecified portion of Patrick’s royalties and speaking fees will go to "A Better Chance," the organization that helped the governor attend Milton Academy.

"We believe that Governor Patrick will give readers everywhere a whole new sense of what is possible in both their personal and civic lives, much the way that President Kennedy inspired the nation with his celebrated Profiles of Courage," Thomas said in the statement. "We are excited and honored to be working with the Governor on his first book project."

The name of the division of Random House is Broadway Books. Other authors who have written memoirs for the publisher include Elizabeth Edwards, wife of the former Democratic presidential nominee; conservative commentator Bill O’Reilly; guitarist Eric Clapton; football player Jerome Bettis; and cyclist Lance Armstrong.

Disclosure of the purpose of Patrick's trip cleared up a mystery that has lingered since last Thursday, when the governor’s aides said he had left Boston on unspecified personal business and repeatedly and firmly declined to discuss any details.

Patrick's book will draw comparisons to books written by his friend and political ally, Senator Barack Obama, whose "Dreams From My Father" and "The Audacity of Hope" have been longtime bestsellers.

Patrick's absence last Thursday raised eyebrows at the State House, where union members and a number of the governor's legislative allies on the casino issue remained throughout the day to follow through in their support of the bill.

Within hours after Patrick left Boston, the House, led by Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi, crushed the casino proposal with a 108 to 46 vote. In the heated run-up to the debate and final vote, a number of Democratic legislators sided with Patrick and defied DiMasi's strong lobbying among members to defeat the governor's proposal.

Patrick's aides released a statement last night at 9:15 confirming the reasons behind the trip after it was reported late yesterday by WBZ-TV and immediately pursued by other news outlets, including the Globe. The Globe received independent confirmation of the trip by two people in the publishing industry.