[Original posting on this topic is reproduced below'; the response follows it.]
From: "Gray, David" <grayd_at_marshall.edu>
Everyone:
I have a couple of questions that I am hoping the list can
help with. A friend who is a faculty member would like to
know how to find sales figures for recently published books.
I know Amazon lists sales rankings, but not sales figures,
and Amazon only tracks their own sales. Is this information
publicly available anywhere?
Also, is there a quick way of determining how many weeks a
given title spent on the New York Times bestseller list?
I mean without going back and looking at the NYTBR for each
title.
Thanks in advance for any help.
David Gray
Collection Development Librarian
Marshall University
Drinko Library
400 Hal Greer Blvd
Huntington, WV 25755
============================================================================================
(1) From: marg_murr_at_mlc.lib.ms.us
The Bowker Annual: Library and Book Trade Almanac provides cumulative
information on book prices, sales and information on bestsellers. This
sources may assist in gathering your information.
Margaret Murray, Senior Consultant
Development Services Division
Mississippi Library Commission
1221 Ellis Avenue
Jackson, MS 39209
=============================================================================================
(2) From: "Genco, Barbara" <b.genco_at_BrooklynPublicLibrary.org>
PW (publishers Weekly) does an annual review article on the top sellers and
lists actual amounts (# units) sold.
http://publishersweekly.reviewsnews.com/
The AAP's site provides general sales info grouped by type of book (in
dollars). http://www.publishers.org/index.cfm
Here are the two most recent sources that review trade sales:
The Bestselling Children's Books of 2002 by Diane Roback -- Publishers
Weekly 3/24/2003
Bestsellers of 2002: Playing the Numbers Compiled by Dermot McEvoy;
introduction by Daisy Maryles -- Publishers
Weekly 3/24/2003
There have been a few articles in the press recently about the inaccurate
data that publishers promulgate re: the size of first printings and sales:
Received on Mon May 12 2003 - 11:48:49 EDT