Unit sales of print books rose 6% in the week ended Sept. 18, 2016, over the comparable week in 2015, at outlets that report to Nielsen BookScan. The adult nonfiction category had the best week, with units up 9% over the week ended Sept. 20, 2015. The gain was led by Killing the Rising Sun by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard, which sold more than 144,000 copies in its first week, making it the top seller in the category. Another new book landed at #2 in adult nonfiction, as Michael Savage’s Scorched Earth sold just under 20,000 copies in its first week. Unit sales in the juvenile fiction category increased 7% in the week over 2015. While J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Cursed Child remained in first place on the bestseller list, two new books had strong debuts: Raina Telgemeier’s Ghosts hit the category list at #3, selling almost 25,000 copies, and Michael Vey 6 by Richard Paul Evans followed in fourth place, selling more than 22,000 copies. The juvenile nonfiction segment had a 4% sales gain in the week. A book that had a good week was My Monster Doodle Dude by Sarah Vince, which sold more than 3,200 copies and moved to fifth place on the category list, from #88 in the prior week. Another book that moved up the list is The Unofficial Pokémon Go Field Guide, which sold more than 3,100 copies. The Pokémon Deluxe Essential Handbook stayed in first place on the category bestsellers list, selling just over 9,100 copies. Unit sales dipped by less than 1% in the adult fiction category in the week. Two editions of The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins took the first two places on the category list, selling a combined 73,000 copies. Ann Patchett’s Commonwealth debuted at #3 on the list, selling about 23,000 copies.
Unit Sales of Print Books by Channel
Sept. 20, 2015 | Sept. 18, 2016* | Chge Week | Chge YTD | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Total | 11,273 | 11,948 | 6% | 5% |
Mass Merch./Other | 1,722 | 1,641 | -5% | -4% |
Retail & Club | 9,551 | 10,307 | 8% 7% |
Unit Sales of Print Books by Category
Sept. 20, 2015 | Sept. 18, 2016 | Chge Week | Chge YTD | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Adult Nonfiction | 4,734 | 5,168 | 9% | 10% |
Adult Fiction | 2,471 | 2,458 | -0.5% | -2% |
Juvenile Nonfiction | 836 | 870 | 4% | 6% |
Juvenile Fiction | 2,837 | 3,045 | 7% | 5% |
Unit Sales of Print Books by Format
Sept. 20, 2015 | Sept. 18, 2016 | Chge Week | Chge YTD | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Hardcover | 2,779 | 3,104 | 11% | 7% |
Trade Paperback | 6,480 | 6,805 | 5% | 6% |
Mass Market Paperback | 1,097 | 1,042 | -5% | -8% |
Board Books | 557 | 622 | 8% | 9% |
Audio | 73 | 73 | 0% | -16% |
*Totals for 2016 include units sold through Family Christian Stores. No sales through Family Christian are included in 2015.