Writer of \'Spider-Man\' Musical Signs a Book Deal

Chad Batka for The New York Times Reeve Carney, center, in a promotion for “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.”

Glen Berger, the Off-Broadway playwright whose plum assignment to collaborate with Bono and the Edge of U2 on a Broadway musical turned into the media circus known as “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark,” has signed with Simon & Schuster to write a book about his experience, the publisher said on Tuesday.

“Song of Spider-Man: The Inside Story of the Most Controversial Musical in Broadway History” was acquired by Jonathan Karp, the publisher and executive vice-president of Simon & Schuster, who has a particular interest in musi cal theater, having written an Off Broadway show of his own in 2004.

Sara Krulwich/The New York Times Glen Berger, right, rewrote the “Spider-Man” script with Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa.

Mr. Berger is by no means an impartial observer in the troubled gestation of “Spider-Man,” the most expensive show in Broadway history. He was brought onto the project by Tony winning director Julie Taymor, with whom he co-wrote the book, but he and Ms. Taymor had an ugly split when she was fired in 2011, and a new writer and director were brought in to make the musical more family- and tourist-friendly. The show earned poor reviews, b ut has been steadily popular since opening.

Ms. Taymor filed suit against the producers of “Spider-Man,” claiming that the re-written show uses her script and designs without permission. Mr. Berger, who collaborated in the re-writing, is also a defendant in the suit. (A federal judge set a late October deadline for the two sides and lawyers for Ms. Taymor and the producers continue to negotiate a final settlement.)

Mr. Karp said on Tuesday he was not worried about possible legal constraints on his author.

“I just think it's a good story,” he said in a phone interview, explaining that Mr. Berger was still writing and that he didn't expect to publish until 2013. “From the pages I've seen, I think it will be an insightful and entertaining account of the making of this musical. “

Mr. Berger was unavailable for comment on Tuesday.