Condoleezza Rice makes to $2.5 million book deal

Former US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice has agreed to a three-book deal with Crown Publishers, starting with a memoir about her years in the administration of former US president George W. Bush. "Rice will combine candid narrative and acute analysis to tell the story of her time in the White House and as America's top diplomat, and her role in protecting American security and shaping foreign policy during the extraordinary period from 2001-2009," according to a statement issued Sunday by Crown, a division of Random House Inc. Crown also published then-Sen. Barack Obama's "The Audacity of Hope." Rice's book is planned for 2011. The deal is worth at least US$2.5 million, according to two publishing officials with knowledge of the negotiations. The officials asked not to be identified, citing the confidentiality of the talks.