Adult Up in Mixed November

Sales in the adult hardcover and trade paperback segments rose 11.8% and 14.8%, respectively, in November, according to estimates from the AAP. The increases, which are in line with reports from bookstores of better November business, pushed sales in the two categories close to breakeven for the year-to-date, with hardcover down 2.6% and trade paper down 2.2%. The religious book segment had another big month, with sales jumping 155.7%, and e-book sales continued to grow, up 128.3%. Audio book sales were up 21% in November, but the other trade segments fell, including the mass market paperback segment, which dropped 3.2%. Both children's segments were down in November, with sales in the hardcover category off 12.3% and paperback sales down 28.1%. Elhi sales dropped 7.4% in the month as sales of basal texts fell 10.1% and supplementary sales dropped 2.3%. For the first 11 months of the year, sales were up in nine of the 13 segments tracked by AAP and down in four.