Fire & Fury, Other Bestsellers Burned Out Fast in 2018

Many books that one would expect to command top-of-the-list status, or to last longest, did not.

Holiday book sales for 2018 helped the publishing industry to enjoy a small sales bump over 2017, according to numbers reported this week by NPD BookScan. And while bestsellers enjoyed the lion’s share of notoriety in the media as well as in bookstores, the reign of individual titles lasted only briefly.

“If there is one takeaway, writes PW contributor Liz Hartman, it is what she calls, ‘an electoral college vs. the popular vote discrepancy,’ when it comes to the noise surrounding certain books and the actual sales numbers. Many of the books that one would expect to command top-of-the-list status, or to last longest, did not,” reports Andrew Albanese, PW senior writer.

For example, “the political Trump-inspired books that grabbed the lion’s share of media attention—and sold very well—had plenty of time to stick to the lists, but didn’t,” he tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally. “Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff, Fear by Bob Woodward, and James Comey’s A Higher Loyalty, were all on the hardcover bestseller list for less than 15 weeks. Fire and Fury performed the best—it lasted 14 weeks.”

Every Friday, CCC’s “Beyond the Book” speaks with the editors and reporters of “Publishers Weekly” for an early look at the news that publishers, editors, authors, agents and librarians will be talking about when they return to work on Monday.