Our 2019 Facts and Figures compilation of children’s bestsellers includes a wide variety of titles, dominated by contemporary graphic novel series and illustrated adventures for middle graders, movie tie-ins, and tried-and-true picture books. Our lists are based on print unit sales at outlets that report to NPD Bookscan, which tracks approximately 85% of the print market. Here we compile the books that sold more than 100,000 copies in four categories: Hardcover Frontlist, Paperback Frontlist, Hardcover Backlist, and Paperback Backlist.
Last year’s overall top-selling book was For Whom the Ball Rolls, book seven in Dav Pilkey’s mega-selling Dog Man series, which sold more than one million copies in hardcover. The middle-grade series had a strong showing across all four categories (see below).
In addition to For Whom the Ball Rolls, hardcover frontlist also features entries in Jeff Kinney’s extremely popular Diary of a Wimpy Kid series; Wrecking Ball and Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid hold the second and third slots, respectively. The latest illustrated edition of J.K. Rowling’s series, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, ranks at number five. And The Pigeon HAS to Go to School!, the 10th outing for Mo Willems’s mischievous bird, leads the flock for new picture book releases.
Perennial bestseller Raina Telgemeier’s latest graphic memoir, Guts, dominates the paperback frontlist category. Other noteworthy series titles on the list, also published by Scholastic, include Boy-Crazy Stacey, book seven in The Baby-Sitters Club Graphix series by Ann M. Martin, illustrated by Gale Galligan; The Lost Heir (Wings of Fire #2) by Tui T. Sutherland; and The Bad Guys in the Big Bad Wolf (The Bad Guys #9) by Aaron Blabey.
For hardcover backlist, Pilkey’s Dog Man is once again at the head of the pack, with Brawl of the Wild (Dog Man #6) in the top slot. The first five titles in the Dog Man series also had very strong showings. Many backlist perennials appear high on our list as well, led by trio of classic picture books: Oh, The Places You’ll Go!, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and Goodnight Moon.
Finally, paperback backlist reveals the popularity of viral sensation The Wonky Donkey by Craig Smith, illustrated by Katz Cowley, which sold nearly 500,000 copies. Also performing well are feel-good picture books Love You Forever by Robert Munsch and Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney, illustrated by Anita Jeram—the latter of which is [getting a sequel in the fall], after 25 years.
Hardcover Frontlist
500,000+
1. For Whom the Ball Rolls (Dog Man #7). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic/Graphix (1,085,519)
2. Wrecking Ball (Diary of a Wimpy Kid #14). Jeff Kinney. Abrams/Amulet (853,626)
3. Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid: Rowley Jefferson’s Journal. Jeff Kinney. Abrams/Amulet (720,794)
4. Fetch-22 (Dog Man #8). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic/Graphix (574,227)
200,000+
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: The Illustrated Edition (Harry Potter #4). J.K. Rowling, illus. by Jim Kay. Scholastic/Levine (381,903)
6. 5-Minute Frozen. Disney Press (238,175)
7. The Tyrant’s Tomb (Trials of Apollo #4). Rick Riordan. Disney-Hyperion (200,036)
100,000+
8. Tales from a Not-So-Best Friend Forever (Dork Diaries #14). Rachel Renée Russell. S&S/Aladdin (189,298)
9. The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! Mo Willems. Hyperion (185,739)
10. Paw Patrol 5-Minute Stories. Random House (181,706)
11. Five Feet Apart (movie tie-in). Rachael Lippincott. Simon & Schuster (168,998)
12. Everything Is Mama (board book). Jimmy Fallon. Feiwel and Friends (168,011)
13. We Are The Gardeners. Joanna Gaines. Thomas Nelson (153,339)
14. On the Come Up. Angie Thomas. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray (147,573)
15. The Good Egg. Jory John. HarperCollins (147,034)
16. When I Pray for You. Matthew Paul Turner. Random House/Convergent (140,903)]
17. The Poison Jungle (Wings of Fire #13). Tui T. Sutherland. Scholastic Press (136,031)
18. How to Catch a Unicorn. Adam Wallace, illus. by Andy Elkerton. Sourcebooks Wonderland (131,303)
19. Frozen 2 Little Golden Book (Disney Frozen). Nancy Cote. Random House/Disney (127,455)
20. The Last Kids on Earth and the Midnight Blade (Last Kids on Earth #5). Max Brallier. Viking (121,757)
21. Good Night, Little Blue Truck. Alice Schertle, illus. by Jill McElmurry. HMH (121,394)
22. Press Here (board book). Hervé Tullet. Chronicle (116,098)
23. How I Met My Monster. Amanda Noll, illus. by Howard McWilliam. IPG/Flashlight (114,121)
24. You Are My Happy. Hoda Kotb, illus. by Suzie Mason. HarperCollins (110,915)
25. Escape from the Isle of the Lost (Descendants Novel #4). Melissa de la Cruz. Disney-Hyperion (105,246)
26. 5-Minute Snuggle Stories. Disney Press (104,132)
27. Touch and Feel: Never Touch a Shark (board book). Rosie Greening, illus. by Stuart Lynch. Make Believe Ideas (103,025)
Paperback Frontlist
100,000+
1. Guts. Raina Telgemeier. Scholastic/Graphix (443,738)
2. Boy-Crazy Stacey (The Baby-Sitters Club Graphix #7). Ann M. Martin, illus. by Gale Galligan. Scholastic/Graphix (152,160)
3. The Lost Heir (Wings of Fire #2). Tui T. Sutherland. Scholastic/Graphix (127,003)
4. The Sun Is Also a Star. Nicola Yoon. Random House/Ember (122,604)
5. The Bad Guys in the Big Bad Wolf (The Bad Guys #9). Aaron Blabey. Scholastic (113,108)
6. National Geographic Kids Almanac 2020. Random House/National Geographic (106,861)
7. Just Jaime. Terri Libenson. HarperTeen/Balzer + Bray (104,093)
Hardcover Backlist
400,000+
1. Brawl of the Wild (Dog Man #6). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic/Graphix (785,328)
2. Oh, The Places You’ll Go! Dr. Seuss. Random House (633,947)
3. The Very Hungry Caterpillar (board book). Eric Carle. Philomel (441,454)
300,000+
4. Goodnight Moon (board book). Margaret Wise Brown, illus. by Clement Hurd. HarperFestival (394,433)
5. Lord of the Fleas (Dog Man #5). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic/Graphix (375,701)
6. Green Eggs and Ham. Dr. Seuss. Random House (347,389)
7. Little Blue Truck (board book). Alice Schertle, illus. by Jill McElmurry. HMH (338,496)
8. The Wonderful Things You Will Be. Emily Winfield Martin. Random House (333,127)
9. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (50th anniversary edition board book). Bill Martin Jr., illus. by Eric Carle. Holt (332,567)
10. Giraffes Can’t Dance (board book). Giles Andreae, illus. by Guy Parker-Rees. Scholastic/Cartwheel (319,909)
200,000+
11. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (board book). Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault, illus. by Lois Ehlert. Little Simon (297,661)
12. First 100 Words (board book). Roger Priddy. Priddy (296,416)
13. Meltdown (Diary of a Wimpy Kid #13). Jeff Kinney. Abrams/Amulet (294,516)
14. Dog Man and Cat Kid (Dog Man #4). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic/Graphix (292,679)
15. Dog Man (Dog Man #1). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic/Graphix (282,004)
16. One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. Dr. Seuss. Random House (278,814)
17. Dog Man Unleashed (Dog Man #2). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic/Graphix (276,020)
18. Dr. Seuss’s ABC: An Amazing Alphabet Book! (board book). Dr. Seuss. Random House (265,947)
19. A Tale of Two Kitties (Dog Man #3). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic/Graphix (249,861)
20. I Love You to the Moon and Back (board book). Amelia Hepworth. Tiger Tales (234,782)
21. The Cat in the Hat. Dr. Seuss. Random House (233,156)
22. The Hate U Give (movie tie-in). Angie Thomas. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray (232,918)
23. Little Blue Truck’s Springtime (board book). Alice Schertle, illus. by Jill McElmurry. HMH (232,602)
24. The Pout-Pout Fish (board book). Deborah Diesen, illus. by Dan Hanna. FSG (230,937)
25. Moo, Baa, La La La! (board book). Sandra Boynton. Little Simon (225,310)
26. The Going to Bed Book (board book). Sandra Boynton. Little Simon (225,064)
27. Dragons Love Tacos. Adam Rubin, illus. by Daniel Salmieri. Dial (218,781)
28. Baby Touch and Feel: Animals (board book). DK (213,023)
29. Wonder. R.J. Palacio. Knopf (208,222)
30. Touch and Feel: Never Touch a Dinosaur (board book). Make Believe Ideas (204,839)
31. On the Night You Were Born (board book). Nancy Tillman. Feiwel and Friends (204,697)
32. We Don’t Eat Our Classmates. Ryan T. Higgins. Disney-Hyperion (202,112)
100,000+
33. If Animals Kissed Good Night. Ann Whitford Paul, illus. by David Walker. FSG (195,442)
34. The Giving Tree. Shel Silverstein. HarperCollins (195,370)
35. There’s No Place Like Space: All About Our Solar System. Tish Rabe, illus. by Aristides Ruiz. Random House (194,135)
36. Five Feet Apart (movie tie-in). Rachael Lippincott with Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis. Simon & Schuster (193,659)
37. How the Grinch Stole Christmas! Dr. Seuss. Random House (187,745)
38. Are You My Mother? (board book). P.D. Eastman. Random House (185,901)
39. The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook: From Cauldron Cakes to Knickerbocker Glory—More Than 150 Magical Recipes for Wizards and Non-Wizards Alike. Dinah Bucholz. Adams Media (184,167)
40. Dear Zoo (board book). Rod Campbell. Little Simon (181,108)
41. National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book of Why. Amy Shields. Random House/National Geographic (179,704)
42. The Polar Express (30th anniversary edition). Chris Van Allsburg. HMH (178,312)
43. Where’s Spot? (board book). Eric Hill. Frederick Warne (176,073)
44. Little Blue Truck’s Christmas (board book). Alice Schertle, illus. by Jill McElmurry. HMH (175,040)
45. Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? (board book). Dr. Seuss. Random House (174,118)
46. Love You Forever (board book). Robert Munsch, illus. by Sheila McGraw. Firefly (169,153)
47. P Is for Potty! (board book). Naomi Kleinberg, illus. by Christopher Moroney. Random House (166,147)
48. The Day the Crayons Quit. Drew Daywalt, illus. by Oliver Jeffers. Philomel (163,311)
49. Welcome Little One (board book). Sandra Magsamen. Sourcebooks Wonderland (162,905)
50. 5,000 Awesome Facts (About Everything!). Random House/National Geographic (162,073)
51. Noisy Farm (board book). Tiger Tales (160,994)
52. The Night Before Christmas. Clement C. Moore, illus. by Christian Birmingham. Running Press (157,116)
53. Tales from a Not-So-Happy Birthday (Dork Diaries #13). Rachel Renée Russell. S&S/Aladdin (156,879)
54. National Geographic Kids Why?: Over 1,111 Answers to Everything. Crispin Boyer. Random House/National Geographic (151,456)
55. The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs. America’s Test Kitchen Kids. Sourcebooks Explore (147,500)
56. Grumpy Monkey. Suzanne Lang, illus. by Max Lang. Random House (144,501)
57. Peek-a Who? (board book). Nina Laden. Chronicle (141,569)
58. What Should Danny Do? Adir Levy. Elon (140,068)
59. The Book with No Pictures. B.J. Novak. Dial (139,010)
60. Oh Say Can You Say Di-no-saur?: All About Dinosaurs. Bonnie Worth, illus. by Steve Haefele. Random House (137,977)
61. Where Is Baby’s Belly Button? (board book). Karen Katz. Little Simon (137,203)
62. The Elf on the Shelf. Carol V. Aebersold and Chanda A. Bell, illus. by Coe Steinwart. CCA & B (136,036)
63. Dear Girl. Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Paris Rosenthal, illus. by Holly Hatam. HarperCollins (136,019)
64. Baby Touch and Feel: Baby Animals (board book). DK (135,139)
65. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone: The Illustrated Edition (Harry Potter #1). J.K. Rowling, illus. by Jim Kay. Scholastic/Levine (134,299)
66. Your Baby’s First Word Will Be Dada (board book). Jimmy Fallon, illus. by Miguel Ordóñez. Feiwel and Friends (133,429)
67. I Wish You More. Amy Krouse Rosenthal, illus. by Tom Lichtenheld. Chronicle (129,759)
69. Refugee. Alan Gratz. Scholastic Press (129,553)
70. Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 2: The Revenge of the Ridiculous Robo-Boogers: Color Edition (Captain Underpants #7). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic (128,577)
71. The Getaway (Diary of a Wimpy Kid #12). Jeff Kinney. Abrams/Amulet (128,148)
72. Fox in Socks. Dr. Seuss. Random House (127,828)
73. Dr. Seuss’s ABC. Dr. Seuss. Random House (127,239)
74. The Last Kids on Earth (The Last Kids on Earth #1). Max Brallier. Viking (126,661)
75. Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Diary of a Wimpy Kid #1). Jeff Kinney. Abrams/Amulet (156,713)
76. 5-Minute Princess Stories. Disney Press (122,439)
77. Waiting Is Not Easy! Mo Willems. Hyperion (121,713)
78. Go, Dog. Go! P.D. Eastman. Random House (119,957)
79. How to Babysit a Grandma. Jean Reagan, illus. by Lee Wildish. Knopf (119,087)
80. P Is for Pterodactyl: The Worst Alphabet Book Ever. Raj Haldar. Sourcebooks Explore (118,718)
81. Barnyard Dance! (board book). Sandra Boynton. Workman (125,907)
82. Are You My Mother? (board book). P.D. Eastman. Random House (115,182)
83. Rosie Revere, Engineer. Andrea Beaty, illus. by David Roberts. Abrams (113,148)
84. Noisy Baby Animals (board book). Tiger Tales (112,882)
85. One of Us Is Lying. Karen M. McManus. Delacorte (112,317)
86. Disney 5-Minute Snuggle Stories. Disney Press (107,798)
87. Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People (Captain Underpants #8). Dav Pilkey. Scholastic (107,666)
88. See, Touch, Feel: A First Sensory Book (board book). Roger Priddy. Priddy (106,501)
89. I Love You Through and Through (board book). Bernadette Rossetti-Shustak, illus. by Caroline Jayne Church. Scholastic/Cartwheel (106,342)
90. Gravity Falls: Journal 3. Alex Hirsch et al. Disney Press (105,857)
91. You’re My Little Cuddle Bug (board book). Nicola Edwards. Silver Dolphin (104,415)
92. Letters A B C (with writing pen) (board book). Priddy (103,113)
93. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Laura Numeroff, illus. by Felicia Bond. HarperCollins (102,869)
94. Never Touch a Dragon (board book). Make Believe Ideas (102,500)
95. A Is for Apple (board book). Georgia Birkett. Tiger Tales (101,428)
96. Little Blue Truck’s Halloween (board book). Alice Schertle, illus. by Jill McElmurry. HMH (101,362)
97. Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb (board book). Al Perkins, illus. by Eric Gurney. Random House (100,425)
98. What Do You Do with a Chance? Kobi Yamada, illus. by Mae Besom. Compendium (100,014)
Paperback Backlist
200,000+
1. The Wonky Donkey. Craig Smith, illus. by Katz Cowley. Scholastic (498,326)
2. Love You Forever. Robert Munsch, illus. by Sheila McGraw. Firefly (301,329)
3. Pokémon Super Deluxe Essential Handbook. Scholastic (244,729)
4. The Giver. Lois Lowry. HMH (237,292)
5. The Outsiders. S.E. Hinton. Penguin/Speak (235,567)
6. I Need a New Butt! Dawn Macmillan, illus. by Ross Kinnaird. Dover (228,697)
7. A Long Walk to Water. Linda Sue Park. Clarion (214,163)
100,000+
8. The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians #1). Rick Riordan. Disney-Hyperion (192,969)
9. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. J.K. Rowling, illus. by Mary GrandPré. Scholastic/Levine (192,755)
10. Guess How Much I Love You (board book). Sam McBratney, illus. by Anita Jeram. Candlewick (191,293)
11. The One and Only Ivan. Katherine Applegate. HarperCollins (187,555)
12. Kindergarten, Here I Come! D.J. Steinberg, illus. by Mark Chambers. Grosset & Dunlap (170,253)
13. Drama. Raina Telgemeier. Scholastic/Graphix (162,217)
14. The Care and Keeping of You: The Body Book for Younger Girls (revised edition). Valorie Schaefer, illus. by Josée Masse. American Girl (150,761)
15. Smile. Raina Telgemeier. Scholastic/Graphix (140,203)
16. Where the Wild Things Are. Maurice Sendak. HarperCollins (136,885)
17. Room on the Broom. Julia Donaldson, illus. by Axel Scheffler. Puffin (136,617)
18. Hatchet. Gary Paulsen. Simon & Schuster (129,726)
19. The Book Thief. Markus Zusak. Knopf (128,489)
20. Dear Martin. Nic Stone. Random House/Ember (123,789)
21. Pete the Cat Goes Camping (I Can Read Level 1). James Dean. HarperCollins (123,754)
22. Sisters. Raina Telgemeier. Scholastic/Graphix (122,516)
23. Out of My Mind. Sharon M. Draper. Atheneum (120,624)
24. P.S. I Still Love You (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before #2). Jenny Han. Simon & Schuster (119,039)
25. How to Draw 101 Animals: Easy Step-by-Step Drawing. Dan Green. Imagine That (117,893)
26. Number the Stars. Lois Lowry. HMH (116,656)
27. Fish in a Tree. Lynda Mullaly Hunt. Puffin (115,376)
28. The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition. Carol V. Aebersold and Chanda A. Bell, illus. by Coe Steinwart. Cca & B (114,858)
29. Restart. Gordon Korman. Scholastic Press (114,680)
30. Because of Winn-Dixie. Kate DiCamillo. Candlewick (114,537)
31. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. John Boyne. Random House/Ember (112,515)
32. Where’s Waldo? (30th anniversary edition). Martin Handford. Candlewick (111,820)
33. Dinosaurs Before Dark (Magic Tree House #1). Mary Pope Osborne, illus. by Sal Murdocca. Random House (111,764)
34. Ghosts. Raina Telgemeier. Scholastic/Graphix (110,823)
35. Baby Shark. John John Bajet. Scholastic/Cartwheel (110,627)
36. The Dragonet Prophecy (Wings of Fire #1). Tui T. Sutherland. Scholastic/Graphix (109,772)
37. Wish. Barbara O’Connor. Square Fish (108,948)
38. Pete the Cat: Trick or Pete. James Dean. HarperFestival (108,569)
39. The Night Before Kindergarten. Natasha Wing, illus. by Julie Durrell. Grosset & Dunlap (105,638)
40. The Bad Guys in Superbad (The Bad Guys #8). Aaron Blabey. Scholastic Press (104,963)
41. Holes. Louis Sachar. Random/Yearling (104,411)
42. The Bad Guys (The Bad Guys #1). Aaron Blabey. Scholastic Press (102,958)
43. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. Sean Covey. Simon & Schuster (102,095)
44. Ghost. Jason Reynolds. Atheneum/Dlouhy (101,782)
45. Scythe (Arc of a Scythe #1). Neal Shusterman. Simon & Schuster (101,139)
