Click here for the piece.
This annual article is a MUST read for anyone who works with any leisure readers. I especially urge you to pass this link to your circulation staff too.
I love this annual breakdown and I am urging you to spend 10 minutes thoroughly reading it. Nowhere else will you see all of the bestsellers assessed together in one place. You will be able to spot some newer trends [like 2017 saw a lot of popular books about making your life better and simpler in many areas], be reminded of titles that endure [SAT prep, What to Expect When You Are Expecting, and The Shack], and see how many weeks specific titles stayed on the list. I also love the breakdowns by publisher and imprint that this article provides each year. They also include year-to-year comparisons.
One of my favorite and fast takeaways from this annual piece is that I can use to to immediately add a new batch of sure bet titles to my arsenal for those who just want “a good read.” Take this paragraph for example:
Spending 41 weeks on our Hardcover Fiction list in 2017 (plus an additional 12 in 2016), A Gentleman in Moscow banished all worries of a sophomore slump for author Amor Towles. It took the prize for longevity last year, with no other title coming close. In second place was Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad, holding fast for 30 weeks (plus another 20 in 2016).If you haven’t already added these two titles to your cache of books to suggest to any patron, do it right now. Books that sell this well will work for most readers. Looking back on my own year of helping readers in 2017, I think these two titles were among my most popular suggestions last year. Keep reading because a few paragraphs later, they also talk about 2016 debuts that still sold strongly in 2017. Those are also a great choice to add to your sure bet arsenal.
But those reasons are just a tease at what you will find. Reading the Bestsellers of 2017 by PW [or any year] is the easiest way to understand the big picture of leisure reading across all adult readers. I would also recommend pairing this piece with your own assessment of you reading from 2017 [as I urged you to do here]. How well did your reading match up with the overall themes and trends from last year? Do you need to catch up on a few titles you missed? Were there titles you were unaware of here? It’s okay if you missed stuff because you can catch up by reading this article.
Read it to make sure you understand the year that just passed, from the book perspective, but also use it to keep an eye toward the future. I know it is a cliche, but knowledge is power. We don’t need to read every book, but we need to be aware of what is most popular so we can assist our patrons better and anticipate their needs. Now you can go find out more about the titles that you know the least about. It is a great cheatsheet to let you know where to focus your immediate attention.
Again, the full piece is here. Start of your week off with this important look back at 2017.
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| Click here for the article |
I've read both A Gentleman in Moscow and The Underground Railroad, but A Gentleman was by far the winner as far as patron interest. I purchased the copy on my own (the library didn't purchase it), and ended up loaning it to a patron because I enjoyed it so much. When he brought the book back, he told me that it was the best book he'd ever read. He's been asking for suggestions from me ever since. Another patron enjoyed the book so much, he offered to donate the money for the library to purchase it. In the end I donated my copy and it's been well read.
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