It was a chance to finally get around to Tolstoy or Proust, but the charts tell a different story. Which books did we actually turn to in the lockdowns? • Let us know in the comments what you were reading Back in spring 2020, when it became clear that coronavirus wasn’t going away, book lovers spied an opportunity for a rare, government-mandated reading holiday. Here, at last, was a chance to have a go at Tolstoy’s War and Peace and Proust’s In Search of Lost Time. Robert Macfarlane reported that he was working his way through the great Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh. Ali Smith urged readers towards Boccaccio’s Decameron. Diana Evans’s thoughts turned “heavenwards” by way of Homer’s Odyssey. I downloaded 27 hours of The Brothers Karamazov audiobook in anticipation.All lovely ideas. With 20 months of hindsight, however, which books did we actually end up turning to? The bestseller lists from the three different lockdowns may not tell you the contents of Britain’s soul, but then again, the numbers do not lie. We read: The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman. Sophie Hinchliffe’s Mrs Hinch: The Little Book of Lists. Lots of David Walliams, who topped the Lockdown 1 and Lockdown 2 charts with Slime and Code Name Bananas respectively. JK Rowling: the first three Harry Potter books steadily rose up the charts through the pandemic. Joe Wicks. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse. A Pinch of Nom, plus spin-offs. Sally Rooney’s Normal People. Reni Eddo-Lodge’s Why I’m No Longer... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2021-12-11 09:00:06 UTC ]
This past November, author Laura Hillenbrand published a young adult version of her 2010 bestseller 'Unbroken' (itself still on bestseller lists). The book for younger readers is also selling well, though reviewers disagree on whether it's necessary. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-12-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Crime novels The Cuckoo’s Calling and The Silkworm, written under the author’s pseudonym, to form the basis of new dramaThe BBC will adapt the crime novels written by JK Rowling under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith, its second collaboration with the Harry Potter author.The Cuckoo’s Calling, the... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
From Dec. 12 to Dec. 23, Rowling is posting 12 new stories set in the 'Potter' universe on the website Pottermore. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-12-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
From Dec. 12 to Dec. 23, Rowling is posting 12 new stories set in the 'Potter' universe on the website Pottermore. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-12-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Pottermore is set to post a surprise each day between the 12th and the 23rd December, including new writing from J K Rowling. In a newsletter sent to Harry Potter fans, Pottermore said Rowling will write about Draco Malfoy, a pupil at Hogwarts and one of Harry Potter’s nemeses, as well as... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
'Harry Potter' fans came together at a castle in Poland to act out the world of J.K. Rowling's books. More events are planned for April. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-12-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
New releases nabbed the top spots on bestseller lists across international markets in October. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-11-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
David Walliams’ Awful Auntie (HarperCollins Children’s) has been named Children’s Book of the Year at the Specsavers National Book Awards, making it the third time in a row the author has won the honour. The awards, presented today (26th November) at a ceremony at the Foreign Office in London... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-11-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The author of The Gruffalo earned more than JK Rowling and Dan Brown in UK, making her the fourth biggest-selling writer in British historyA dancing chorus of giants and snails, witches and Gruffalos have propelled Julia Donaldson into uncharted territory, as the former childrens laureate... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-11-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Ebook readers reveal the most highlighted passages in Harry Potter, the Bible, Lord of the Rings and many more Its an odd sensation to be reading an ebook and to suddenly notice that thanks to the providers data-tracking software youre on a passage that other people have already highlighted. I... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-11-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Man Booker-shortlisted Ali Smith, Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction winner Eimear McBride, and Costa Book of the Year winner Nathan Filer are among the authors vying at the Specsavers National Book Awards this year. Presented in association with high street campaign Books Are My Bag, the awards... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-11-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
David Walliams' Awful Auntie (HarperCollins) retains pole position at the top of the official UK Top 50 for a record-breaking sixth week selling another 31,012 copies in the seven days ending 1st November. Volume sales were down 13% week on week but the bestseller has yet to sell less than... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-11-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Dolores Umbridge is a sadistic teacher whom Harry encounters. Rowling posted a piece on the website Pottermore with new information about the character's past and revealed how she was inspired to give the cruel teacher a love of bows and kittens. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-11-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
J K Rowling has revealed that Dolores Umbridge, a Hogwarts professor and enemy of Harry Potter, was based on a real person. In any essay posted on the Pottermore website, Rowling said she “disliked intensely on sight” the person she based Umbridge on, who was a teacher “in a certain skill or... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-11-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Sales bumps after books are adapted as movies or TV shows are nothing new, but 'Gone Girl' author Flynn and 'Outlander' writer Gabaldon are seeing their older books reappear and hold steady on bestseller lists as well. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-10-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
David Walliams has retained pole position in the UK Official Top 50 for the fifth consecutive week, narrowly eclipsing Lynda Bellingham's memoir, in the week that the TV star lost her battle to cancer. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-10-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Oliver Jeffers, David Walliams and Malorie Blackman are some of the big-name authors on the shortlists for the 2015 Red House Children’s Book Awards. The shortlist is divided into three categories and in the youngest group - books for younger children - the nominations are Dragon Loves... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-10-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
David Walliams, Malorie Blackman and Debi Gliori are among the authors on this year's shortlist for the Red House Children's book prize. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2014-10-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The final installment in Ken Follett’s Century trilogy, Edge of Eternity, landed at the top of two bestseller lists in international markets in September. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Richard Preston's book 'The Hot Zone' was published in 1994 and tells the story of Ebola appearing in a lab in Washington D.C. Now it's back on bestseller lists and it could be adapted as a TV series. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-10-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this