Publisher sales figures were stable this year, with most reporting companies just slightly ahead of or behind where they were in 2024. (Bloomsbury is the exception, falling from their record-breaking year in 2023, which had a new book by blockbuster romantasy author Sarah J. Maas.) Industry print sales monitored by the AAP ebbed while ebooks remained flat and audiobooks inched higher (now past the big boost from Spotify), outselling ebooks for the second year on record. (But also, AAP stats are missing data from growing publishers such as Sourcebooks and Entangled.) Here’s our roundup of results from the publicly trade […]
Barack Obama’s Top Books of the Year
People 12/18
AAP Reports Strong Adult Sales in October
The Association of American Publishers announced sales data for October from its participating StatShot publishers, reporting trade book sales up 2.8 percent to $1.03 billion. (That makes it the second-best October recorded by the AAP, next to the massive sales of $1.042 billion in 2021, which was the best year ever for trade book sales.) Adult books rose 6 percent to a record $745 million, with $393 million in fiction (up 11.3 percent) and nonfiction just above flat at $351 million. The category saw growth in every format, with hardcovers up 8.8 percent to $336 million, paperbacks up 3.5 percent to […]
B&N, Waterstones Owner Considers IPO
Elliott Management is exploring an initial public offering for Barnes & Noble and Waterstones, the Financial Times reports, a notion that has been teased for years now. FT notes that Elliott has begun discussing the move with potential advisors, and that investment banks could be named early next year, though other details are sparse. The company’s fiscal year ends in April, so they conclude an IPO wouldn’t be offered at least until summer 2026. A source told FT that it is likely to be listed on the London Stock Exchange, “given the steady income being generated by the businesses, which […]
RBmedia and Norton Announce Exclusive Audiobook Partnership
Norton has entered an exclusive audiobook partnership with RBmedia, expanding the companies’ existing partnership. Norton audiobooks will be published across a number of RBmedia brands, including Recorded Books, Tantor, Dreamscape, HighBridge, and Ascent Audio, and available for download on leading audio platforms. “Audio has become essential to the way that readers discover and engage with books, and we are thrilled to expand our reach via this unique partnership,” said Elisabeth Kerr, Norton’s director of content and business strategy, in a release. “RBmedia and Norton have had an exceptional working relationship for years, and this new agreement deepens that collaboration—expanding awareness […]