JK Rowling and Bill Bryson top the charts, while film tie-ins give Paula Hawkins and Jojo Moyes a second bite of the cherry – but this unpredictable year has also seen a welcome revival of humorous writingIt was a year when the No 1 book was a play script. When hyper-prolific James Patterson, dubbed the “library king” as Britain’s long-reigning most-borrowed author, could manage no higher than 60th place. When the anonymous, insanely difficult GCHQ Puzzle Book was 43rd, and so beat super-sellers like Patterson and Ian Rankin, not to mention all those much-hyped hygge books.The all-year sales rankings for 2016 are full of such surprises, as befits an unpredictable year, but also contain much that is comfortingly recognisable, such as the ghosts of Christmas charts past at the top. With Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, JK Rowling reclaims the No 1 spot that used to be reserved for her in the noughties, and her versatility is underlined by four other entries in various genres (12, 28, 64, 95). Bill Bryson reprised the round-Britain trip behind his mid-90s hit, Notes from a Small Island, in The Road to Little Dribbling (13) and the result is the list’s highest placed non-fiction title. Mary Berry (17), easily this year’s leading conventional cookery writer, was penning bestselling festive gifts long before either of them emerged. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2016-12-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
J. K. Rowling says she'd need a 'fabulous idea' to go back to the world of Harry Potter. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Her first post-Harry Potter book is a work of adult fiction, but its release follows an earlier playbook: It's been kept from prying eyes. Mystery ensues.J.K. Rowling wrote "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" as a single mum on the dole. Seven books, 4,100 pages and a blockbuster film... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Random House’s William Heinemann has acquired a non-fiction title about language... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-09-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The success of 'Harry Potter, 'Twilight' and other has created a halo effect for the entire genre. And kids aren't the only ones doing it.For years, the book industry has been mired in debates about the plight of independent booksellers, the rise of Amazon and the fate of print as it struggles... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-08-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In the market for a new e-reader? One could certainly do worse than Sony's Reader line. The company's been packing features onto its devices, and the already leaked latest entry is no different, with upgrades over its predecessor, packed into a newly redesigned body with bigger, better looking... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2012-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Fifty Shades of Grey' has passed the 'Harry Potter' books and 'The Da Vinci Code' to become the country's bestselling book. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-08-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The final book in The Hunger Games trilogy is coming to the big-screen in two parts starting in 2014. Lionsgate Films announced today that The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 will be released November 21, 2014, and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2 will follow on November 20, 2015. The... Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2012-07-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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J.K. Rowling's 'Book of Spells' will allow players to wave wands and cast spells using Wonderbook technology. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-06-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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William Heinemann has acquired a non-fiction title which combines the parallel biographies of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Harry Potter has joined the Kindle lending library.Amazon.com announced Thursday that on June 19, the ebook editions of J.K. Rowling's seven Potter novels will become part of the Kindle service available to Amazon Prime subscribers. Members can download a book for free once a month. Amazon's... Continue reading at Crains New York
[ Crains New York | 2012-05-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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All the books in the Harry Potter series will arrive in the Kindle lending library – free for Amazon Prime members – on June 19. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-05-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Members of the Amazon Prime subscription program will be able to read "Harry Potter'' ebooks for free through the Kindle Owners' Lending Library, a move intended to encourage consumers to buy Kindle devices. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2012-05-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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JK Rowling's first book for adults will be a "blackly comic" novel set in an idyllic English town where all is not what it seems, her publisher says. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2012-04-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sceptre has signed three new titles, striking deals for a non-fiction title about avoiding errors... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-04-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Harry Potter theme park in Orlando, Fla., more than lived up to its hype for this fan. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The literary genre is white-hot in Hollywood, with filmmakers bidding on unpublished books and paying as much as $1 million for the rights to relatively modest sellers.The back-to-back blockbuster successes of "Harry Potter," "Twilight" and now "The Hunger Games" have turned the hunt for fresh... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The "Harry Potter" series, which has conquered mediums from books to movies, is finally available in ebook format. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bloomsbury has acquired a non-fiction title about Princess Sophia Duleep Singh, the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-03-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pottermore has partnered with ebook company Overdrive to bring electronic versions of the 'Harry Potter' series to libraries and schools in five languages. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Biteback has bought a non-fiction title which makes a strong bid to reveal the identity of Jack... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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