So this is interesting. I read two articles this week about NBC and whether or not they were going to cancel their long anticipated hit of the season, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. I thought the show was quite successful. In my previous rant about NBC I might have even suggested that had the put on a show as good as Studio 60 at their 8 o’clock time slot they would not be in the turmoil that they are in now. I agree that their problem is not bad lineups but bad shows. And the critics in each of these articles I read online were agreeing. Some of the comments were very, very, harsh. But I digress. The point I would like to make is that what other industry in America is there when 7 and a half million customers, buyers or clients is not a big deal? Believe me; I would be very happy with 7 million readers!
Speaking of book sales, guess which book is topping the charts! I’ll give you a hint, it’s a children’s book and it is not Harry Potter. The End by Lemony Snicket!! I haven’t read any of the books, I watched the movie that came out…I might even own it, but that is far as my unfortunate experience goes. But these numbers are very impressive. Check out this excerpt from The Book Standard,
“Lemony Snicket kept up his End of the bargain with HarperCollins, which printed an unprecedented 500,000 copies of the final book in his Series of Unfortunate Events: The End stays on top of the Overall Chart for the second consecutive week, moving 149,000 more of those copies. The End leads an encouraging performance from the Top Five, with every one of them—including three gun-ho bestselling authors and one rising political star—selling more than 50,000.”
Do you think this is average sales? Let me just fill you in on the competition.
1. THE END, Lemony Snicket (HarperCollins, Hardcover, 0064410161)
2. THE INNOCENT MAN, John Grisham (Doubleday, Hardcover, 0385517238)
3. FOR ONE MORE DAY, Mitch Albom (Hyperion, Hardcover, 1401303277)
4. THE AUDACITY OF HOPE, Barack Obama (Crown, Hardcover, 0307237699)
5. THE COLLECTORS, David Baldacci (Warner Books, Hardcover, 044653109X)
Barack Obama’s book sold 67,000 copies last week, and fell short to John Grisham’s excursion into Non Fiction. In its first week, The Innocent Man sold 171,000 copies but was still beat out by The End which debuted at 192,000 units.
Fascinating.
