Regan publishing a new novel...by Mickey Mantle?!

If you thought that the OJ Simpson and Fidel Castro memoirs were signs of publishing's apocalypse, here comes another gem. Next March, Judith Regan will publish 7: The Mickey Mantle Novel, a fictional account narrated by a fictional Mantle.

According to the BS, the novel includes "claims that Mantle had an affair with Marilyn Monroe while she was married to Joe DiMaggio and that the late [Bill] Martin was a rapist." The author ironically cites journalistic integrity as his reason for putting words into Mantle's mouth:

“Every time I sat down to outline it, I knew that all of the stories that were told to me over the years were not documentable, and it concerned me, especially after what happened with Jim Frey,” said [author Peter] Golenbock, according to PW. “My choice them became to write a biography and leave these stories out—but that wouldn’t be Mickey Mantle. It really didn’t leave me any other choice.”

Regan had a choice -- it was whether or not to publish this book. And without evidence to back up those claims, she chose poorly.