Hachette Audio is celebrating its silver anniversary in June to coincide with National Audiobook Month. Like many houses, Hachette has found digital audiobooks to be a particular bright spot. Digital sales grew by significant double digits last year alone, according to Anthony Goff, senior v-p and publisher of Hachette Audio.
“As digital audiobook sales continue to grow year after year,” Goff adds, “it’s been gratifying to be a part of the Hachette Audio team. We’ve gone from publishing a handful of titles as digital downloads a decade ago, to dozens every month, across every genre.”
The press’s bestselling audio titles over the past quarter century mirror print book standouts. They range from Nelson Mandela’s autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom, which dates to the audio division’s launch in 1994, to Candace Bushnell’s Sex and the City (2000), Tina Fey’s Bossypants (2011), and Madeline Miller’s Circe (2018).
Looking ahead to the fall, Goff is particularly excited about Malcolm Gladwell’s Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don’t Know (Sept.), which he calls “one of the most buzzed-about books of this year.” Gladwell, who will speak at today’s Adult Book & Author Breakfast, brings many of the lessons he learned from his popular Revisionist History podcast into a special production for the audiobook, says Goff.
At BookExpo, Hachette (booth 1339) is kicking off a 25th anniversary sweepstakes. Three first prize winners, drawn from consumers and booksellers, will be awarded a library of 25 titles—one published by Hachette Audio each year since 1994. The books represent a balance of fiction and nonfiction. These prizes will be redeemable via download codes through Libro.fm. One grand prize winner will win the library as well as a mini tablet and a pair of wireless earbuds. Rules are available online at www.hachetteaudio.com/25.
