Everyone Adores Dora
Hold on to your backpacks! Dora, the spunky Latina heroine of Nick Jr.-TV's wildly popular Dora the Explorer series for preschoolers has brought her star power to the book world. Last April, Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing (Nickelodeon's sister company under the Viacom umbrella) began rolling out eight Dora tie-in books in various formats. To date, those titles have sold a combined total of more than 1.3 million copies.
Any Dora fan knows that the show's resourceful protagonist is never without her backpack. It's no wonder then that Dora's Backpack is the top seller among the initial releases. Backpack has racked up sales of approximately 250,000 copies, helped, no doubt, by a recent prime-time Dora the Explorer special on Nickelodeon, which explained the origins of Dora's favorite (and magical, of course) accessory.
TV is far from Dora's only exposure, however. From January to March, the American Library Association sponsored a "Follow Dora's Lead...Read!" campaign. S&S hosted a "Have your picture taken with Dora" event at its booth at ALA's midwinter conference, and held a party at the New York Public Library. A Dora standee and an event kit containing activities, giveaway tattoos and a poster were sent to nearly 2,000 S&S accounts nationwide. A Dora poster containing activities went out to more than 4,200 additional accounts as well.
So far, it looks like bookstores have been happy to follow Dora's lead. End-cap displays have featured Dora titles in various Barnes & Noble and Borders locations, and S&S reports that in certain mass-market outlets (some sites in the Target, Kmart, Walmart and Toys R Us chains) Dora titles have a whole shelf to themselves. A 46-copy display and six-copy clip-strip display have further aided retailers in their efforts.
As a result of this character's mass appeal, Dora books landed on PW, New York Times, USA Today and BookSense bestseller lists through June. There are no signs of her slowing down, either. Five new titles, including A Present for Santa (based on another Nickelodeon prime time special), launch this fall with heavy support including display materials from the publisher. And starting in spring 2003, S&S will release several new formats, publishing Dora Board Books, Jumbo Shaped Board Books and Super Chubby board books with bilingual English/Spanish text (on her show, Dora, who is fluent in both languages, routinely sprinkles her English with a few Spanish words). Plans are to continue the bilingual approach for those formats going forward.
Pssst. Heard the Latest?
Though they may not want to admit it, there are scads of adults out there who find gossip a most titillating form of entertainment. We know that they buy tabloid newspapers, tell-all books and magazines like Vanity Fair, People and US. But adults are far from alone in their fascination with what other people are up to. Teens are notorious for telling tales out of school, especially about their classmates. Now there's a book that dishes high-school dirt like never before, and teens (as well as a good number of adults) are lapping it up in big numbers.
The trade paperback Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar (Little, Brown) hit bookstore shelves last April, earning solid reviews and an immediate following. It was soon clear that the initial print run of 35,000 was not enough to meet demand. To date the book has been back to press four times and boasts 100,000 copies in print and close to 60,000 copies sold, according to David Ford, publisher of Little, Brown Children's Books.
Such success--especially for a series debut--is rarely achieved without a publicity push. Little, Brown created the right kind of buzz for Gossip Girl with, appropriately enough, a strong word-of-mouth campaign. In-house, the book was considered a hot property early on. Editor Cindy Eagan and the publicity staff (including former senior publicist Kerri Goddard Kinch) had a hunch that teen readers would flock to the exploits of anonymous narrator Gossip Girl, who runs with an elite crowd of wealthy prep school kids living and partying (quite hard) on New York City's Upper East Side. The publisher did a BookSense mailing of bound galleys to 250 independent booksellers, and sent galleys to 50 teenage girls across the country. A full-color brochure talking up the book and explaining its audience, and a promotional pink lip gloss went out to booksellers and reviewers.
Booksellers from the major chains quickly got in the Gossip game. In mid-June, Little, Brown received reports that many Barnes & Noble stores could hardly keep Gossip Girl on the shelves; the chain was selling several hundred copies per day.
Gossip Girl benefited from some hip consumer teen coverage as well. Little, Brown produced 7,000 full-color postcards that were shipped with outgoing orders from the Alloy catalogue, and a four-page excerpt appeared in the spring 2002 Alloygirl magazine, which has a circulation of 750,000. (Note: Alloy Inc. is the parent company of 17th St. Productions, which is producing the Gossip Girl books.) Teen magazines Twist, J-14, Teen People, YM and CosmoGirl! all featured the book and/or author, and several of the publications offered the book and aforementioned lip gloss as raffle prizes for readers.
Apparently, teens (the vast majority of them girls) couldn't be happier to see Gossip Girl rise to the top. One 16-year-old fan wrote to Little, Brown, "I really loved this book because it's like reading a narrative of the rumors at my school. It's so true to life, but in a humorous way." And a 15-year-old girl remarked, "The bit on the back cover that states something about 'grabbing you from page one' is claimed on so many books and isn't true. But for Gossip Girl it was so totally true!"
In what Ford and many others consider a pleasant surprise, there has been no controversy or negative feedback--from librarians or anyone else--regarding Gossip Girl's depictions of teenage sex and drug use and occasional expletives. And though he said that his evidence is largely anecdotal, Ford noted that Gossip Girl has a fairly large adult readership. "A friend of mine was carrying Gossip Girl on a plane and the woman next to her was reading Mary Higgins Clark," Ford said. "Before the flight was over, my friend's seatmate had put down Mary Higgins Clark and was reading Gossip Girl."
The book, aimed at readers 15-up and sporting a slick, gossip-column-style photo on the cover, was clearly conceived as a potential crossover property. So much so that LB may produce an adult trade edition of the book. It has been spotted on bookstores' general fiction summer reading tables in addition to being in the teen section. "It appeals to the dishy, juicy thing in all of us," Ford said. "Anyone who loves Sex and the City will love this."
The second of four books currently under contract will be published in September and is titled You Know You Love Me. Ford commented, "We've already advanced more than twice as many copies of this second book than we did of the first" (You Know You Love Me's planned initial print run is 50,000 but Ford believes that quantity may increase in coming weeks). Book three, All I Want Is Everything, arrives in spring 2003. Beyond that, Ford hopes to sign up several more titles in the series. And in the meantime, he said, Little, Brown is developing "at least three other series of this ilk." Spread the word.
P Is for Patriotism
By now, Lynne Cheney, wife of Vice President Dick Cheney, is surely used to being in the spotlight. It seems that Cheney's ease with political publicity has well prepared her to step into the glare in a new role: children's book author. Hers is the voice behind America: A Patriotic Primer, a picture book illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser (Simon & Schuster, May). Cheney has said that her text is intended to be an introduction to the founding principles of our country that families can share and discuss. To that end, it explores 26 ideas and historical figures from "A is for America, the land that we love" to "D is for the Declaration that proclaimed we were free."
On June 9, Cheney was guest of honor at a party celebrating the launch of her book held at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. She delivered remarks to over 500 people in attendance (including 200 children) at the event, which was covered live by Book TV on C-SPAN, the first time the network has done such extensive live children's-book coverage.
The Smithsonian fête capped off a two-week media blitz by Cheney that included national TV (The Today Show, Larry King Weekend), radio (Morning Edition) and print (the New York Times Book Review, National Review, U.S. News and World Report) exposure.
All those interviews have obviously packed some punch. Since its May 21 laydown, America: A Patriotic Primer has sold 450,000 copies and boasts 502,000 copies in print. It has also appeared on several bestseller lists--at press time the book held the top slot on children's lists from PW, BookSense and The New York Times (having charted high at USA Today and the Wall Street Journal as well).
Expanding America's reach, Delta and US Airways shuttles between New York and D.C. participated in a giveaway of 1000 copies, each of which included a bounce-back postcard from S&S for recipients to claim a second free copy of the book. Cheney participated in a live (and lively) AOL chat on July 18. During her only public signing, at a Dallas Barnes & Noble, Cheney greeted more than 350 people and the store sold more than 500 books. And America received a high-wattage plug on the Viacom electronic billboard in Times Square from mid-June to mid-July.
Due to favorable response from the library and school markets, S&S has contacted librarians via an e-mail mailing and is rolling out teacher activities on the S&S Web site, advertising in teacher magazines and distributing information via bookstore-hosted "educator nights" this fall.
Cheney's profits are going to charity (to the Red Cross and to organizations that foster an appreciation of American history). In addition, S&S has designated a portion of its profits to children's literacy organization First Book.
Book buyers put their money where their hearts were by purchasing another patriotic picture book in recent weeks: We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States, illus. by David Catrow (Dial, Apr.). Dial reports the initial printing of 30,000 copies is moving well. Editorial director Lauri Hornik noted, "Certainly the heightened patriotism this year is contributing to the book's success. We were really pleased that we happened to be bringing out a book about America's freedoms right at this time, when such a book is especially needed. And I'm sure that buyers, both parents and teachers, are finding it a refreshing, positive way to steer the conversation with their kids."
A Chilling Crossover; Hot Sales
Neil Gaiman likely doesn't take offense at the fact that he gives lots of people the creeps. After all, he's a bestselling author of several spine-tingling horror and fantasy novels for adults (Stardust; the Sandman comics series). Gaiman's latest tale, Coraline (HarperCollins, July), possesses the dark, haunting appeal his fans have come to expect--except that Coraline is a book marketed to young readers.
In the novel, when Coraline makes her way through a mysterious door in her family's apartment, she finds herself in a spooky, parallel "other" version of her life. Released earlier this month, Coraline is off to a flying start, receiving numerous starred reviews in industry journals and debuting at #10 on the New York Times children's bestseller list the week of July 21. Of the 100,000-copy initial print run, hardcover sales have already reached nearly 75,000.
Though it's often difficult to determine a customer breakdown, HarperCollins sales reps have been assuming that much of this initial sales push is coming from adults. "His fan base is so connected and so devoted and they were aware early on that the book was coming," explained Rebecca Grose, senior manager of publicity at HarperCollins Children's Books.
A recent Coraline launch event/reading at Cody's Books in Berkeley (where Gaiman read his entire novel to the crowd) enticed more than 600 Gaiman fans, a few of whom drove cross-country, according to Grose. More exposure for the book is planned via floor displays and publisher promotions scheduled for Halloween and the holiday season. In addition, the unabridged audiobook, read by Gaiman and featuring music by the Gothic Archies (known for their funny/creepy songs on the Series of Unfortunate Events audiobooks) is moving very well with 10,000 copies in print after three trips back to press.
Coraline may be Gaiman's first novel for young readers, but he has dipped into the children's book pool before, with the critically acclaimed picture book The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish, illustrated by Dave McKean (a frequent Gaiman collaborator, who also did the jacket and interior illustrations for Coraline). Released by Clarkston, Ga.-based White Wolf Publishing in 1997, the book has sold nearly 20,000 copies in hardcover and close to 25,000 as a trade paperback.
According to Dean Burnham, White Wolf v-p of sales and marketing, sales of the paperback "have picked up for us" since the release of Coraline. "People have been seeing the new book and are interested in going back and finding our title," he commented. Though White Wolf is primarily a game company, and mostly publishes books related to its products, Burnham says they hope to do more stand-alone projects like Gaiman's. In addition, Burnham notes, "We'll probably go back to press real soon" on The Day I Swapped My Dad.
Junie B.: Flying High
Since 1992, feisty kindergartner Junie B. Jones has made a name for herself in bestsellerdom as the star of Barbara Park's paperback early reader series from Random House Books for Young Readers. Junie B.'s kindergarten exploits have filled 17 books, which have sold over seven million copies combined. But in November 2001, Junie B. moved into the big time in more ways than one. The character started first grade and Random House published her first first-grade adventure in hardcover (a first for the series). Junie B., First Grader (at last!) is currently in its 12th printing with more than 340,000 copies sold.
Now Junie B., First Grader: Boss of Lunch (released May 28) is following suit. The book debuted in the top slot on the New York Times children's bestseller list on June 16. After an initial printing of 200,000 copies, the book has gone back to press three more times and boasts nearly 300,000 copies in print. In another first, Barbara Park did publicity for the series this summer, including several New York City bookstore events followed by an appearance on The Today Show last month.
Going forward, Random House plans to publish all Junie B. books initially in hardcover, followed by the release of a paperback edition in the following year. Thus far, the strategy seems successful, capitalizing on the loyal support of educators and parents as well as the demand among young readers for one of their favorite characters.
Other Titles on the Fast Track
Jerry Spinelli's Stargirl (Knopf, 2000) certainly hit the heights in hardcover, with nearly 180,000 copies in-print to date after eight printings. It quickly became a handsell favorite of booksellers, and was named a Book Sense Book of the Year finalist. The book's striking jacket also seems to have played a role. Based on reports from accounts and sales reps, Random House knows that the hardcover landed on several staff selection and adult fiction tables. Now the trade paperback edition is also seeing star sales. Since its release on May 14, with a first printing of 90,000 copies, the book has been back to press four times and has 185,000 copies in print. And sales staff have confirmed Stargirl's role as a crossover title, mentioning that the new edition is making its way onto general trade paperback tables.
The elusive Lemony Snicket (aka Daniel Handler), author of the bestselling Series of Unfortunate Events books, tells all in Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography, and his fans can't seem to get enough of his life and times. HarperCollins released the book May 1 with an initial print run of 220,000 copies. Since then, the book has sold nearly 285,000 copies and currently has 325,000 copies in print. Still riding the momentum of Snicket's first eight Unfortunate Events books, Harper also pulled out the promotional stops for his new title, creating a retail event kit, classroom kit, shelf talkers, floor displays with giveaways and an online contest via www.lemonysnicket.com (featuring the grand prize of a visit from Mr. Snicket). A fortunate turn of events, indeed.
Admittedly, the success of Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison is enough to put a twist in other publishers' knickers. First published by HarperCollins in April 2000 with a print run of 15,000, followed by the paperback in April 2001, this title currently boasts 265,000 total copies in print. That quantity is no doubt a reflection of warm critical response, including receiving a Printz Honor award from the ALA, as well as an enthusiastic response from readers. Readers obviously wanted to hear more confessions of narrator/journal-writer Georgia Nicholson, because they've responded well to Angus's two sequels, On the Bright Side, I'm Now the Girlfriend of a Sex God (April 2001 hc; May 2002, paper; 175,000 in-print, hardcover and paperback combined) and Knocked Out by My Nunga-Nungas (May 2002 hc; 95,000 in print). All three titles have held various spots on the PW and New York Times bestseller lists.
According to Alix Reid, editorial director at HarperCollins Children's Books, "We had very high expectations for Angus, Thongs and one sequel when we bought it in a very competitive auction. It came out to starred reviews and much critical attention and the sales were very strong. It's not a given that sales go up with each new book in a series, but because of a combination of dynamic covers, Georgia's irreverent teenage voice and the upbeat and lighthearted subject matter, Louise's books are only growing in popularity."
Savvy young readers figured it was only a matter of time before the megaselling Captain Underpants books by Dav Pilkey spawned a spin-off. Now Underpants fans are reveling in The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby (Scholastic/Blue Sky), the latest work by George and Harold (Pilkey's creative but disruptive protagonists). Last February the paperback Super Diaper Baby arrived on the scene with a 600,000-copy first printing (a small number of hardcovers are printed for the institutional market). The book debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list that month and held the top spot for seven weeks straight. It peaked at #6 on the USA Today list and remained on that list for 19 weeks. To date, there are 1.6 million copies of Super Diaper Baby in print. Surely, few consumers could resist a floor display with a battery-powered spinning baby and a tear-off glow-in-the-dark poster pad. Pilkey plans to do more Super Diaper Baby titles, though none have been scheduled yet. In the meantime, George and Harold's fans will have to make do with the All New Captain Underpants Extra-Crunchy Book o' Fun #2, due out next month.
Giggle, Giggle, Quack, Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin's humorous barnyard picture-book follow-up to their Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type, is still selling a gaggle of copies. Since its May release, Simon & Schuster reports that Giggle has sales of 110,000 copies under its wing, boosted by an extensive spring author-illustrator bookstore tour, promotional posters and post-its, as well as interviews in Family Fun, USA Today and Inside Borders (the chain's in-store magazine).
