Via Publishers Marketplace:

NYT restaurant critic Frank Bruni's memoir that traces his unlikely path to the unexpected destination of high-profile reviewer of fine-dining establishments in New York, to Jane Fleming at Penguin Press, in a major deal, by Lisa Bankoff at ICM (NA).

We are so looking forward to Ambling into Gramercy: The Unlikely Odyssey of Frank Bruni. It's the story of a man who attains the most powerful position in his field in spite of slim qualifications.

Once in office, he boldly dashes down a dark path which results in calamity and destruction, harming both the influence of his platform and dragging down the reputation of the very institution that he serves. He is surrounded by trusted advisers, all schemers and cronies of dubious ethics and bald politics. We're particularly interested in his rationalizations for the War on Crudo, which was launched based on evidence concerning an abundance of raw fish on New York restaurant menus that later proved to be manipulated. Likewise, the crusade against Jeffrey Chodorow, murderous dictator of the China Grill empire, who Bruni assumed to have weapons much more destructive than what he actually stockpiled, should also make for interesting reading. The surprise ending is that he gets north of half a million bucks for the memoir—the very one you're holding in your hands as you turn that final page! How meta. How expensive. Expect a lot of alliteration. —balk

Ambling into History [Amazon]