Bestseller Stat Shot
Frequent readers of this page will be well versed in how popular coloring books for adults are this year. Adults, the story goes, are turning by the thousands to coloring in order to relax, unwind, or just take the edge off of the day. A look at this week’s bestseller list reveals another hobby that’s driving book sales: video games. Fallout 4: Vault Dweller’s Survival Guide, the strategy guide to the much-hyped video game Fallout 4, is the second-highest-selling book in the country, having cleared 44K print copies its first week on sale. Fortune reports that the video game sold 12 million copies in its first 24 hours of availability, making it the biggest video game launch this year. As for the book, here’s how it fares compared to other titles in its BISAC category.
(Fallout aside, Minecraft is the king of companion books, having inspired dozens of titles. So far this year, the top 100 Minecraft books combined have sold more than 1.4 million print copies.)
| Title | Publisher | YTD Sales |
|---|---|---|
| The Big Book of Building: Everything Minecraft | Triumph | 53,980 |
| Fallout 4: Vault Dweller’s Survival Guide | Prima Games | 43,949 |
| Plants vs Zombies: Timepocalypse | Dark Horse | 24,754 |
| Block City: Incredible Minecraft Worlds | Abrams | 21,882 |
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Collector’s Edition | Prima Games | 20,465 |
From the Newsletters
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A report from the retail trenches: one children’s bookseller reports that people are getting their holiday shopping done early this year.
Podcasts
PW senior writer Andrew Albanese previews the Miami Book Fair, the nation’s largest consumer book fair, featuring a slate of name-brand authors and a huge Spanish-language component.
The More to Come crew survey the best books lists that have come out so far and discuss the upgrades Google Play rolled out for digital comics.
Aija Mayrock talks about The Survival Guide to Bullying (Scholastic), which draws from her own experiences, as she offers tips and tactics for children who are being bullied.
Industry veteran Eric Kampmann discusses his book Getting to Know Jesus (Beaufort), which offers daily Scripture readings on the life of Jesus.
Author and ceramics artist Edmund de Waal discusses his new book The White Road: Journey into an Obsession (Farrar, Straus and Giroux). PW senior news editor Calvin Reid recaps the National Book Awards.
The most-read review on publishersweekly.com last week was Poor Your Soul by Mira Ptacin (Soho).
Publishers Weekly and the Bologna Children’s Book Fair present Global Kids Connect, a one-of-a-kind event on the best strategies to engage the children’s and young adult book market on a global scale. Register today, and we’ll see you on December 2.
