Simon & Schuster's New Editor-in-Chief Will Edit Karl Rove's Book

Time magazine lifer Priscilla Painton, who was named editor-in-chief of Simon & Schuster's flagship imprint yesterday, will edit Karl Rove's forthcoming memoirs, according to The Politico.

Ms. Painton, who was deputy managing editor of Time until she quit this past October in search of a "second act," has known Mr. Rove for many years, according to The Politico, and calls him a "natural storyteller." What's more, "they already like each other," which is perhaps why Ms. Painton is getting involved with the book even though it's being published by a different imprint of Simon & Schuster than the one she'll be working for.

"Karl is a natural storyteller," Painton is quoted as saying in The Politico. "If you sit and listen to anything he wants to tell you about - say, how Texas went from having mostly Democratic officeholders to mostly Republican officeholders, he tells stories that are extraordinarily fun, with color and greet characters. It's my hope that the book will capture the whole rise of Bush and his legacy with the compelling stories, but also with an argument about what was happening in the country over the period, and what is likely to happen in the future. Rove continues to be able to tell us, in quite a bit of detail, how he did it and what about his approach to politics is going to last and what isn't. It's a book about their relationship, as told through their adventure in politics together."