Moving On Up
Shannon Maughan -- 8/7/00
Snapshots of titles flying high on the charts
In Harry's Wake
 | | Two Ibbotson titles enjoying the Harry Potter effect. |
Ever since Harry Potter came on the scene, children's booksellers have watched the boy wizard attract legions of youngsters who might otherwise never have willingly picked up a book. Not ones to let a good thing slip away, booksellers have been quick to recommend other fantasy/ adventure titles that will satisfy Potter fans as they wait for Rowling's next book (or take a break from re-reading the ones they already have).
Two titles that have performed particularly well in light of this Harry Potter halo effect are The Secret of Platform 13 and Which Witch? by British author Eva Ibbotson (both Dutton). Platform 13, a tale about a magical kingdom whose entrance under Platform 13 at London's King's Cross train station, had a modest printing in hardcover back in June 1998 and now stands at 16,500 copies in print. But the paperback edition, released by Puffin in October 1999, has really caught fire. After eight printings, the in-print total is up to 91,000. Originally published in Britain in 1994, the timing apparently could not have been better for a transatlantic crossing.
Likewise, Ibbotson's Which Witch?, a comic tale about witches competing in a contest for a wizard husband, was first released in England in 1979 and has made the trip across the pond with great success. The just-released (August) Puffin paperback edition already boasts 36,000 copies in print, while the Dutton hardcover has sold more than 21,000 in its first year. According to Tim Moses, publicity director at Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers, "These titles have been showing up constantly on 'What to Read After Harry Potter' lists in stores all over the country. But the first inkling we had that something special was happening with the sales was when Platform 13 had a spot on the January/February Book Sense 76 list. Shortly after that, Barnes & Noble placed a huge reorder."
Northshire Books in Manchester, Vt., is one retailer that enthusiastically promotes the Ibbotson books. "We've done very, very well with both titles," said David Walden, a children's bookseller at the store, "and they are on our recommended list for people requesting books similar to Harry Potter. We sell a handful of each every day. We suggest them to younger readers especially, because the books are humorous, like Roald Dahl's titles, and the kids really like that." Lisa Dugan, children's book buyer for K n Book Distributors, has also seen an overwhelmingly positive response to the books. "We've sold 800 copies of the Which Witch? paperback since it first shipped on June 28," she said. "And we sell hundreds of copies of Platform 13 each month."
Both Dugan and Walden agree that though Harry Potter may have given Ibbotson a boost, she deserves the attention in her own right. "We love these books," Dugan said. "Many of our New England booksellers were talking about them eons ago and it's paid off for us." Walden added: "We hand-sold them at first, but now they just go on their own. Ibbotson is really gaining a following."
Jolly Sales for Junie
 | | A hit for #15 in the series |
Junie B. Jones, the spunky kindergartner who stars in Barbara Park's early-reader series of the same name from Random House, first charmed readers, booksellers and teachers when she made her debut in 1992. But with out-of-the-gate stellar sales of Junie B. Jones Has a Peep in Her Pocket (May),the 15th title in the series, it seems Junie has truly arrived. In this latest outing, Junie is not eager to accompany her class on a field trip to a farm.
Judith Haut, publicity director for Random House Children's Books, said the company has shipped "60% more copies in the first three months than we did for the previous title, which was a Valentine's Day book. This is the fastest-selling Junie B. title in the history of the series." The first printing of 125,000 moved so quickly that 50,000 copies were added almost immediately. Now in its fourth printing, Peep's in-print total currently stands at 255,000 copies.
Haut believes the reasons for the book's outstanding performance are several, but that the first-ever Junie B. Jones floor display no doubt provided a big push. Random House shipped nearly 2,000 of the 16-copy display that featured an inset bin of polka-dot hair ribbons (tag line: "Look just like Junie B. Jones!") free to consumers with a book purchase. The Random House marketing team also designed an in-store event/activity kit in honor of the Peep release.
"We can't keep it in stock," said Elly Gore, children's book buyer for the Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops in Wisconsin. "It has been a lot of fun for the kids. They're always anxious to read the next one--Barbara Park has built an enormous following for that series."
"We've done tremendously with that book," commented Dodie Levitt, children's book buyer for the Hastings Entertainment chain of stores based in Amarillo, Tex. "We've sold over 400 so far and we picked it up late, just in July."
The Summer of Killer Sales
 | | More summer reading than ever. |
In June, just as required summer reading lists were popping up all over, the paperback edition of Summer Reading Is Killing Me by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith, the seventh title in their popular Time Warp Trio chapter-book series (Viking in hardcover, Puffin in paperback), hit bookshelves. The fantasy/time-travel tale, in which characters from classic books on a summer reading list run amok, has seemingly captured the imaginations of kids who are newly initiated when it comes to over-the-summer reading assignments.
"There's no ques- tion that this is the book's best summer yet," said Moses at Penguin Putnam. He speculated that a Summer Reading Is Killing Me riser, a Time Warp Trio floor display and a poster all contributed to the title's latest success. The hardcover, which was first published in July 1998, has racked up an in-print figure of 80,000 copies; the paperback edition has equaled that figure, with three printings since June.
"It's selling amazingly well," said Dugan at K n. "It's outselling all the others in the series; we've sold 800 copies just since it came out in paperback. Teachers have really latched onto it, and I know that many bookstores are using it in their summer displays and promotions."
"We have it right up on the counter," said Walden at Northshire Books. "When people see how he [Scieszka] is spoofing the real books, they grab it right up." The title is also performing well at Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops. "It's funny and light," said Gore. "Booksellers like the series as much as the kids do--it's on our Schwartz 100 list of featured titles for July. And it's an easy and obvious handsell because of the title."
Dinosaur Dreamin'
 | | A picture book that is topping lists. |
If book sales are any indication, plenty of young readers want to know the answer to this query: How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? The bedtime picture book by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Mark Teague and published by Scholastic/Blue Sky, has been picking up a steady head of steam since its April publication. On the heels of a 66,500-copy first printing, Teague toured the Northeast in April and the Midwest in May to an "amazing" response, according to senior publicist Elizabeth Eulberg. The book was featured on the cover of Scholastic's spring catalogue, and promotional items included a door hanger, a poster and a window cling for store windows.
On July 23, Dinosaurs landed a coveted spot (#8) on the New York Times's very first children's bestseller list. This kind of attention has sent Scholastic back to press five more times, for a total of 165,500 books in print.
"It's been an excellent seller for us," said Gore at Harry W. Schwartz. "We had the illustrator out here this spring, and as a result the book has been really popular in the community. Now that it's on the Times children's list, that helps, too."
"The book has done exceedingly well," said Dugan. "We've been selling about 200 copies a month. It's a sweet book that has been a big surprise to me."
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