Comic Fiction at Its Finest: Salt Welcomes Rob Palk
We're delighted to welcome Rob Palk to Salt
We're thrilled to announce a two-book deal with Rob Palk. Christopher Hamilton-Emery has acquired UK and Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) to The Crowd Pleaser and a reissue of Animal Lovers, from James Wills at Watson, Little Ltd.
The Crowd Pleaser will be published as a Paperback Original in February 2027, with the reissue of Animal Lovers following in October 2026.
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About the books
Mike Perry is a stand-up comedian unlike any other. Sharp, self-sabotaging, and achingly sincere, he is trying to make people laugh – and, somewhere along the way, to work out what he actually wants from his life. The Crowd Pleaser is a novel about performance and authenticity, about the gap between the person we present and the person we are, and about what it takes – and costs – to make a room full of strangers care about you.
Rob Palk's debut novel, Animal Lovers (first published Sandstone Press, 2018), announced him as a writer of rare comic gifts: tender, precise, and quietly devastating. The reissue will introduce his work to a new generation of readers.
In their own words
Rob Palk said: 'I'm thrilled my books have found a home on Salt, alongside so many great authors. The Crowd Pleaser is the work I'm proudest of so far, and it's great to have a new release of Animal Lovers alongside it. I'm so glad people will have the chance to read them and know that Salt will do a fantastic job.'
Christopher Hamilton-Emery said: 'I'm a huge admirer of Rob's fiction and I'm delighted to welcome him to Salt. Both novels will extend our comic fiction, which now forms an important component of our developing list. We can't wait to share the funny, tender and deeply moving tale of Mike Perry – a stand-up comedian like no other.'
About Rob Palk
Rob Palk is the author of Animal Lovers (Sandstone Press, 2018), described by reviewers as 'slick and polished, with a highly poetic turn of phrase' and praised for its humanity and wit. He lives and writes in York. The Crowd Pleaser is his second novel.