London, Feb. 9 (ANI): A new novel 'Longbourn,' that retells the story of Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice' from the point of view of its servants has been sold around the world.
The novel by Jo Baker was snapped up by US and UK publishers last week.
Baker said that Austen was his first experience of grown-up literature.
She said that as she read it again and again, she began to become aware that if she had been living at the time, she would not have got to go to the ball and would have been stuck at home with the sewing.
The 39-year-old British author said that she drew inspiration from her family's years in service.
'Longbourn' follows a romance between a newly arrived footman and a housemaid in the Bennet household, which runs parallel to the love story between Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet, the BBC reported.
Baker's agent Clare Alexander said that she sent it out last week and Knopf bought it on Monday and on Wednesday, it was bought by Doubleday in the UK.
She said that by Thursday the film rights had gone and by Friday, they had signed up two foreign translations.
According to the book's UK publisher Transworld, translation rights have been sold in Spain, Italy, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Brazil, France and Sweden.
Film rights have been bought by Random House Studio and Focus Features, that distributed the 2005 film 'Pride and Prejudice' in the US.
The novel will be published in hardback and e-book format later this year, with a paperback release to follow in 2014. (ANI)
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