This unique family have come to redefine our notions of the All-American family

Simon & Schuster

The Osbournes have sold the world rights to two books to Pocket Books, part of New York-based publishers Simon & Schuster.

The deal is to involve a paperback tie-in to the MTV show plus a hardback family memoir.

The tie-in is to be published in November while the hardback will appear next spring.

Individual memoirs from each family member - Ozzy, his manager wife Sharon, their 15-year-old son Jack and daughter Kelly, 16 - will fill the hardback.

It will also feature the couple's third child Aimee, 18, who did not want to take part in the show and lived in a guesthouse during the six months of filming.

Multi-generational appeal

Simon & Schuster's adult publishing group president Carolyn Reidy said: "The Osbournes are a popular phenomenon of the first magnitude.

"Their appeal is multi-generational and covers the entire political and cultural spectrum.

"We're delighted to publish them at Simon & Schuster."

The company's executive vice-president and publisher Louise Burke, added: "It's not often a book gets a chance to bite the head off of the bestseller lists.

"I look forward to working with this unique family who have come to redefine our notions of the All-American family."

Family life

The books will be published in England by Simon and Schuster UK and in audio by Simon & Schuster Audio.

Osbourne, from Birmingham, has found a new wave of fame due to the reality programme which chronicles his family life in their Beverly Hills mansion.

The show was launched in the US earlier this year and is regularly watched by about six million people.

During filming, the family allowed MTV cameras access to their home for six days a week and only the master bedroom and bathrooms were off limits.