Publisher 'Certain' of 'Literal Copying' in Sophomore's Novel

Publishing giant Random House is “certain” that a novel by Kaavya Viswanathan ’08 contains “literal copying” from its own author’s works, according to a letter obtained by The Crimson.

“We are continuing to investigate this matter, but, given the alarming similarities in the language, structure and characters already found in these works, we are certain that some literal copying actually occurred here," Min Jung Lee, the assistant general counsel of Random House, wrote in an April 22 letter to Carol Ross, the general counsel of Little, Brown, which released Viswanathan’s debut novel “How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life” this month.

Random House is the publisher of “Sloppy Firsts” and “Second Helpings” by Megan F. McCafferty. The two books have sold a combined 300,000 copies, according to the firm.

In the letter, the Random House lawyer Lee told Little, Brown: “[W]e would appreciate your prompt and serious attention to this matter.”

Lee wrote that Viswanathan’s novel “contains passages that are identical or strikingly similar to passages found” in McCafferty’s two works. The Crimson first reported the similarities on its website early Sunday morning. In total, The Crimson has identified more than a dozen such passages.

In the letter, Lee wrote that some illustrative examples of similar passages between “Opal Mehta” and the two McCafferty novels were enclosed, along with copies of the McCafferty books. The missive, which came on the letterhead of Random House and its parent company Bertelsmann, said that it was transmitted “by hand delivery.”

McCafferty first learned about the similarities on April 11 in an e-mail from a fan, according to her agent Joanna Pulcini. Pulcini said on Sunday that she had notified Random House about the matter.

A spokesman for Random House, Stuart Applebaum, said he could not confirm or deny the authenticity of the letter to Little, Brown. But, he said: “Publishing protocol dictates that one contacts the publisher of the book whose text may bear alleged similarities. So it is customary, it would be customary, for us to reach out to the publisher you name.”

Lee did not return requests for comment. Little, Brown has declined to comment to The Crimson.

Viswanathan’s book, like McCafferty’s two novels, charts the life of a female teenage protagonist in suburban New Jersey. McCafferty’s “Second Helpings” is a sequel to “Sloppy Firsts.”

Viswanathan worked with a book packaging company—17th Street Productions, which is owned by Alloy Entertainment—in the development of “Opal Mehta.” Alloy Entertainment and Viswanathan own the copyright to the novel, and Variety reported in February that Alloy Entertainment, along with Contrafilm, is slated to produce the film adaptation. The rights to the novel were purchased that month by DreamWorks.

“As has been previously reported, we helped Kaavya conceptualize and plot the book,” Leslie Morgenstein, the president of Alloy Entertainment, wrote in an e-mail today. “We are looking into the serious allegations detailed in the Crimson before commenting further.”

—Staff writer David Zhou can be reached at dzhou@fas.harvard.edu.