As always, backlist titles dominated the top-selling books of last year. Of the top 200 books on Circana Bookscan through December 23, 2023 (their week 51, so nearly final)—including paperbacks and new editions—142 were more than a year old, in line with the roughly 70 percent of all print unit sales comprised by backlist titles. Classics such as The Outsiders and 1984 and perennial kids favorites from Eric Carle and Sandra Boynton took their spots on the list, as did books with big media tie-ins (which have been bestsellers in their own right): Killers of the Flower Moon, Daisy Jones […]
Year End
The Year in Legal News; Part 2
In the second half of our annual review of legal news, we recap the many lawsuits surrounding book banning and also touch on some other oddities that made their way to court this year. Book Banning For the second year in a row, book banning was a major concern. Strategies to combat the conservative-led bans against LGBTQ+ books and books by BIPOC authors in school libraries ranged from marketing campaigns to lawsuits. In May, PEN America, Penguin Random House, and a group of authors sued the Escambia County, FL school district where over 200 books had been targeted for banning, […]
The Year in Finance
Publishing financial results were a mixed bag in 2023, with some publishers “flying high” (Simon & Schuster, Bloomsbury) and some falling (Hachette, Scholastic), while others saw a bit of both (Harper Collins). According to the AAP, trade book sales faltered slightly in the first three quarters, and while some publishers have reported lower overall book sales and continued supply chain pressures, others are reaping the benefits of increased interest in commercial and genre fiction. Penguin Random House Bertelsmann expects full-year sales to be “moderately” over last year, with a flat operating profit and a slight decline in EBITDA. As yet, […]
The Year In Legal News: Part 1
This year, publishing’s biggest legal battles centered on a few topics: AI, book banning, and the long-running suit filed by major publishers against the Internet Archive. Copyright was at the center of many of our stories–and will continue to be as lawsuits stretch into the new year. Due to the complexity of several ongoing cases, we’ve split our annual roundup into two parts, with the first focused on the Internet Archive suit and the many class action suits brought by authors and publishers against OpenAI and Meta for copyright infringement. Internet Archive In March, a suit brought by the AAP […]
Malaviya Acknowledges “Changes” in Year-End Letter
In a year-end letter to staff, Penguin Random House CEO Nihar Malaviya notes the challenges and successes the company had in 2023. “We have made significant changes, all to better position ourselves for the future,” he writes. “Many of these were exciting, but I also want to acknowledge that several others have been very difficult and challenging.” Though the memo is light on details, he notes the blockbuster publication of SPARE and expanding the company’s audio list as highlights. He continues, “We have sold more books this year than last year, our overall revenues are higher, and we have gained […]
Barnes & Noble Book of the Year Finalists
Barnes & Noble announced 12 finalists for their 2023 Book of the Year, as nominated by booksellers.