Bestsellers

Behind the Bestsellers
Daisy Maryles -- 2/5/01

'Bound' for Success | What's in a Name? | Art of Darkness | And 'The Last' Shall Be First


'Bound' for SuccessTalk about a compelling human-interest story--Jerri Nielsen, the doctor who was forced to treat herself for breast cancer while stationed in Antarctica, has chronicled her harrowing experience in Ice Bound, which debuts at #3on our nonfiction list. Last month's first serial in Talk
magazine kicked off Talk Miramax's extensive publicity campaign, and Dr. Nielsen was profiled in O (Oprah's magazine) as February's "Phenomenal Woman." A three-part Good Morning America feature launched the TV coverage, followed by Prime Time Thursday, Oprah, The Rosie O'Donnell Show, Today, etc. (According to Talk Miramax publicity director Hilary Bass, Barnes &Noble sold some 8,000 copies over the three-day weekend following the Prime Time and Oprah appearances.) One of the stops on Dr. Nielsen's tour, which began on January 26, was at R.J. Julia Booksellers in Madison, Conn., where her appearance brought in more than 300 people. She will continue making appearances through the fall. Breast cancer alliance groups around the country have rallied behind Dr. Nielsen, Bass said, working with bookstores to bring out the crowds. Also helping in this effort have been the National Science Foundation for Polar Exploration and Dr. Nielsen's fellow "polies." Copies in print after two trips back to press: 225,000.

What's in a Name?It's not surprising that Putnam's two new fiction bestsellers enjoyed a second week of strong sales, since both are by veteran chart makers--Jayne Ann Krentz and W.E.B. Griffin. Krentz's latest, Lost &Found, was launched on January15 with a 170,000-copy first printing. As part of her current 22-city tour, which began in her hometown of Seattle, the author's been keeping a "Road Trip Diary," a chronicle that she's posting daily on her Web site (www.jayneannkrentz.com). In addition, she's been doing a great deal of promotion online, including chats on barnesandnoble.com, Borders.com and iVillage.com. The prolific Krentz has penned more than 120 novels under her

pseudonyms--historical/regency romances as Amanda Quick and future-oriented fiction as Jayne Castle--and has racked up 27 New York Times bestsellers. Altogether, there are more than 23 million copies of her books in print.

Speaking of pen names, William Butterworth has chosen to write all his books as W.E.B. Griffin, and for the sake of variety takes turns writing bestselling novels in different blockbuster series. His latest opus, Special Ops, is the ninth installment of his Brotherhood of War series--the most recent of which was 1988's The Aviators. As this has been one of the author's most popular series, Putnam launched the new title with a 195,000-copy first printing and a national newspaper ad campaign.


Art of DarknessThe latest from another habitué of national bestseller lists debuts in our #2 fiction spot--Michael Connelly's A Darkness More Than Night was published by Little,Brown January 23 with a 250,000-copy printing. The author of the megaselling Harry Bosch novels (as well as Void Moon, Blood Work and The P t) here brings together two of his most vivid characters--the intrepid LAPD homicide detective, Bosch, and Terry McCaleb, the retired FBI investigator who starred in Blood Work. PW's charts have been home to five of Connelly's novels; the paperback of Void Moon just concluded a three-week run. Connelly, who has won every major mystery prize (Edgar Award, Nero Wolfe prize, Macavity Award, Anthony Award), set out January 23 on a five-week, 26-city tour. In November, he'll be the toastmaster at the annual Bouchercon convention, being held this year in Washington, D.C. Lots more info can be found on www.michaelconnelly.com.


And 'The Last' Shall Be FirstOops. There was a small problem with our announcement last week of Oprah's first book club selection for the new year, The Last of the Mulvaneys--there's no such book. The correct title of the 1996 Joyce Carol Oates novel is We Were the Mulvaneys. Perhaps we were thinking that, given Oprah's track record, we haven't seen the "Last" of this title. Indeed. The novel debuts at #2 on our trade paperback list and, as this column went to press, held the #1 position at Amazon.com.

With reporting by Dick Donahue.