Unit sales of print books rose 5% in the week ended Nov. 27, 2016, over the comparable week in 2015, at outlets that report to Nielsen BookScan. The gain was driven by a 19% jump in unit sales in the juvenile fiction category. The segment benefitted from a holiday push by Disney, which released a host of new storybook collections. Four of those books held the third, fourth, fifth, and seventh positions on the juvenile fiction bestsellers list, with a total of approximately 267,000 units sold. Three other books published by Disney imprints finished among the top 11 category bestsellers: Star Wars: The Original Trilogy (LucasFilm) sold more than 69,000 copies and landed in eighth place on the list, while Avengers Storybook Collection and Spider-Man Storybook Collection from Marvel Press were in the 10th and 11th spots, respectively. Avengers sold more than 65,000 copies and Spider-Man sold more than 57,000. Unit sales rose 2% in adult nonfiction over the similar week in 2015. With more than 57,000 copies sold, Jesus Always by Sarah Young was #1 in the category; its sales jumped 163% over the week ended Nov. 22, 2016. Thomas Friedman’s Thank You for Being Late sold more than 21,000 copies in its first week, landing it in seventh place on the adult nonfiction list. The big gains posted by Disney’s books had a meaningful impact on sales through the mass merchandisers channel, where a large portion of them sold. Sales via mass merchandisers have been down for the year but rose 17% in the week ended Nov. 27, 2016, over the comparable week in 2015. The hardcover format also benefitted from the Disney release, with weekly units up 17% over 2015.

Unit Sales of Print Books by Channel

Nov. 29, 2015 Nov. 27, 2016* Chge Week Chge YTD
Total 15,027 15,807 5% 4%
Mass Merch./Other 2,926 3,419 17% -4%
Retail & Club 12,101 12,387 2% 5%

Unit Sales of Print Books by Category

Nov. 29, 2015 Nov. 27, 2016* Chge Week Chge YTD
Adult Nonfiction 5,156 5,276 2% 7%
Adult Fiction 2,654 2,584 -3% -1%
Juvenile Nonfiction 1,587 1,468 -7% 4%
Juvenile Fiction 4,804 5,724 19% 4%

Unit Sales of Print Books by Format

Nov. 29, 2015 Nov. 27, 2016* Chge Week Chge YTD
Hardcover 5,196 6,076 17% 5%
Trade Paperback 7,167 7,169 0% 5%
Mass Market Paperback 1,084 951 -12% -8%
Board Books 843 896 6% 7%
Audio 99 80 -19% -13%

*Totals for 2016 include units sold through Family Christian Stores. No sales through Family Christian are included in 2015.