The most surprising bestseller in international markets in March was in the Netherlands, where John Williams’s classic novel Stoner reached #1. First published in 1965, Stoner is undoubtedly an “American novel,” following a poor farming boy’s time at a state university in Missouri at the beginning of the 20th century. Still, the book is seeing astounding sales, not only in the Netherlands, but in France, Spain, Italy, and Israel. New York Review Books Classics released a paperback edition of Stoner in the U.S. in 2006 and an e-book edition in 2010; since then it’s become one of the top-selling books on the publisher’s list. According to Dutch publisher Lebowski, there are 85,000 copies of Stoner in print in the Netherlands.
Debuting at #2 in Italy is Simonetta Agnello Hornby’s The Poison of the Oleander. Three of Hornby’s novels have been published in the U.S.: The Almond Picker and The Marchesa (both by Farrar, Straus and Giroux), and, The Nun by Europa Editions in late 2011.
Dora Heldt, a German author and bestseller, debuted at #3 in her native country. Three of her titles have been acquired by AmazonCrossing in the U.S.: Life After Forty, Inseparable, and Tidal Shift; the latter will be released in May 2013. The #1 fiction title in Germany at the end of March was He’s Back, a satire that envisions Hitler alive in 21st-century Berlin.
International Bestsellers
Germany
| Fiction | Nonfiction | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Er ist wieder da He’s Back Timur Vermes Eichborn | Das Geheimnis des perfekten Tages The Secret of Having a Perfect Day Dieter Nuhr Bastei Lübbe |
| 2 | Herzblut Heart Blood Volker Klüpfel, Michael Kobr Droemer | Ego. Das Spiel des Lebens Ego: The Game of Life Frank Schirrmacher Blessing |
| 3 | Herzlichen Glückwunsch, Sie haben gewonnen! Congratulations, You’ve Won! Dora Heldt dtv | Das große Los Jackpot Meike Winnemuth Knaus |
Italy
| Combined | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | La rivoluzione della luna The Revolution of the Moon Andrea Camilleri Sellerio Editore Palermo | 4 | Letto di ossa The Bone Bed Patricia Cornwell Mondadori |
| 2 | Il veleno dell’oleandro The Poison of the Oleander Simonetta Agnello Hornby Feltrinelli | 5 | Vendetta di sangue Vicious Circle Wilbur Smith Longanesi |
| 3 | Fai bei sogni Create Beautiful Dreams Massimo Gramellini Longanesi | 6 | Sua Santità. Le carte segrete di Benedetto XVI His Holiness: The Secret Documents of Benedict XVI Gianluigi Nuzzi Chiarelettere |
Netherlands
| Combined | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stoner Stoner John Williams Lebowski | 4 | De bakkersdochter The Baker’s Daughter Sarah McCoy Boekerij |
| 2 | Slaap The Sandman Lars Kepler Cargo | 5 | De vergelding The Retaliation Jan Brokken Atlas | Contact |
| 3 | Vader Father Karl Ove Knausgård De Geus | 6 | Ronald Koeman Ronald Koeman Bert Nederlof Voetbal International |
