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''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times bestsellers since the first list, 50 years ago'', Berkeley: Ten Speed Press, 1992. Since October 12, 1931, ''
The New York Times Book Review ''The New York Times Book Review'' (''NYTBR'') is a weekly paper-magazine supplement to the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times'' in which current non-fiction and fiction books are reviewed. It is one of the most influential and widely rea ...
'' has published the list weekly. In the 21st century, it has evolved into multiple lists, grouped by genre and format, including fiction and non-fiction, hardcover, paperback and electronic. The list is based on a proprietary method that uses sales figures, other data and internal guidelines that are unpublished—how the ''Times'' compiles the list is a
trade secret Trade secrets are a type of intellectual property that includes formulas, practices, processes, designs, instruments, patterns, or compilations of information that have inherent economic value because they are not generally known or readily asc ...
. In 1983 (as part of a legal argument), the ''Times'' stated that the list is not mathematically objective but rather editorial content. In 2017, a ''Times'' representative said that the goal is that the lists reflect authentic best sellers. The list has been a source of controversy. When the ''Times'' believes a book has reached the list in a suspicious way—such as through bulk purchases—the book's entry on the list is marked with a
dagger symbol A dagger, obelisk, or obelus is a typographical mark that usually indicates a footnote if an asterisk has already been used. The symbol is also used to indicate death (of people) or extinction (of species). It is one of the modern descendan ...
(†).


History

Although the first best seller list in America was published in 1895, in '' The Bookman'', a best seller list was not published in ''The New York Times'' until October 12, 1931, 36 years later, with little fanfare. It listed five fiction and four non-fiction books for New York City only. The next month, the list was expanded to eight cities, each with its own list. By the early 1940s, fourteen city-lists were included. A national list was created on April 9, 1942, in the Sunday ''New York Times Book Review'' as a supplement to the Monday edition regular city lists. The national list was ranked according to how many times the book appeared in the city lists. Eventually the city lists were eliminated, leaving only the national ranking list, which was compiled according to "reports from leading booksellers in 22 cities". Ranking by bookseller sales figures continues today, although the process has remained proprietary. By the 1950s, ''The Times''s list had become the leading best-seller list for book professionals to monitor, along with that of ''
Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...
''. In the 1960s and 1970s, shopping-mall chain bookstores
B. Dalton B. Dalton Bookseller (often called B. Dalton or B. Dalton's) was an American retail bookstore chain founded in 1966 by Bruce Dayton, a member of the same family that operated the Dayton's department store chain. B. Dalton expanded to become the ...
,
Crown Books Crown Books was a bookseller headquartered in Prince George's County, Maryland, with a Largo post office address. It was founded in the Washington, D.C., metro area by Robert Haft in 1977. Crown Books (retail) is of no relation to Crown Books ...
, and Waldenbooks came to the forefront with a business model of selling newly published best-sellers with mass-market appeal. They used the best-selling status of titles to market the books and not just as a measure of sales, thus placing increased emphasis on the ''New York Times'' list for book readers and book sellers. As shown in the graph below, the number of titles achieving the number one spot has grown consistently over the years, ranging from fewer than 10 in the 1970s to the high thirties in the past decade. This graph represents fiction titles only. Years with smaller numbers means one or more titles dominated as major best sellers, notably '' The Da Vinci Code'' in
2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
and
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
, '' Fifty Shades of Grey'' in
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
and ''
Where the Crawdads Sing ''Where the Crawdads Sing'' is a 2018 coming-of-age murder mystery novel by American author Delia Owens. The story follows two timelines that slowly intertwine. The first timeline describes the life and adventures of a young girl named Kya as s ...
'' in
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
.


Composition

The list is compiled by the editors of the "News Surveys" department, not by ''The New York Times Book Review'' department, where it is published. It is based on weekly sales reports obtained from selected samples of independent and chain bookstores and wholesalers throughout the United States. The sales figures are widely believed to represent books that have actually been sold at retail, rather than wholesale, as the ''Times'' surveys booksellers in an attempt to better reflect what is purchased by individual buyers. Some books are flagged with a
dagger A dagger is a fighting knife with a very sharp point and usually two sharp edges, typically designed or capable of being used as a thrusting or stabbing weapon.State v. Martin, 633 S.W.2d 80 (Mo. 1982): This is the dictionary or popular-use de ...
indicating that a significant number of bulk orders had been received by retail bookstores. ''The New York Times'' reported in 2013 that "we enerally do nottrack the sales of classic literature," and thus, for example, new translations of Dante's ''Inferno'' would not be found on the bestseller list. The exact method for compiling the data obtained from the booksellers is classified as a
trade secret Trade secrets are a type of intellectual property that includes formulas, practices, processes, designs, instruments, patterns, or compilations of information that have inherent economic value because they are not generally known or readily asc ...
. Book Review staff editor Gregory Cowles explained the method "is a secret both to protect our product and to make sure people can't try to rig the system. Even in the Book Review itself, we don't know (the news surveys department's) precise methods." In 1992, the survey encompassed over 3,000 bookstores as well as "representative wholesalers with more than 28,000 other retail outlets, including variety stores and supermarkets." By 2004, the number was 4,000 bookstores as well as an unstated number of wholesalers. Data is adjusted to give more weight to independent book stores, which are underrepresented in the sample. The lists are divided among
fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...
and
non-fiction Nonfiction, or non-fiction, is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to provide information (and sometimes opinions) grounded only in facts and real life, rather than in imagination. Nonfiction is often associated with be ...
, print and e-book, paperback and hardcover; each list contains 15 to 20 titles. The lists have been subdivided several times. "Advice, How-To, and Miscellaneous" debuted as a list of five on January 1, 1984. It was created because advice best-sellers were sometimes crowding the general non-fiction list. Its inaugural number one bestseller, ''The Body Principal'' by Victoria Principal, had been number 10 and number 12 on the non-fiction lists for the two preceding weeks. In July 2000, the "Children's Best Sellers" was created after the
Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...
series had stayed in the top spots on the fiction list for an extended period of time. The children's list was printed monthly until February 13, 2011, when it was changed to once an issue (weekly). In September 2007, the paperback fiction list was divided into "trade" and "mass-market" sections, in order to give more visibility to the trade paperbacks that were more often reviewed by the newspaper itself. In November 2010, ''The New York Times'' announced it would be tracking
e-book An ebook (short for electronic book), also known as an e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Alt ...
best-seller lists in fiction and nonfiction starting in early 2011. "RoyaltyShare, a San Diego-based company that tracks data and aggregates sales information for publishers, will ... provide -bookdata". The two new e-book lists were first published with the February 13, 2011, issue, the first tracks combined print and e-book sales, the second tracks e-book sales only (both lists are further sub-divided into Fiction and Non-fiction). In addition a third new list was published on the web only, which tracks combined print sales (hardcover and paperback) in fiction and nonfiction. On December 16, 2012, the children's chapter books list was divided into two new lists: middle-grade (ages 8–12) and young adult (age 12–18), both which include sales across all platforms (hard, paper and e-book).


Statistics

According to an EPJ Data Science study that used big data to analyze every ''New York Times'' bestselling book from 2008 to 2016, of the 100,000 new, hardcover print books published each year, fewer than 500 make it on to ''The New York Times Best Seller'' list (0.5 percent). Most novels (26 percent) appear on the list for only one week. To make the list, it is estimated that novels sell from 1,000 to 10,000 copies per week, depending on competition. Median sales fluctuate between 4,000 and 8,000 in fiction, and 2,000–6,000 in nonfiction. The majority of ''New York Times'' bestselling books sell from 10,000 to 100,000 copies in their first year. During the period studied (6 August 2008 to 10 March 2016), Dan Brown's book ''
The Lost Symbol ''The Lost Symbol'' is a 2009 novel written by American writer Dan Brown. It is a thriller set in Washington, D.C., after the events of ''The Da Vinci Code'', and relies on Freemasonry for both its recurring theme and its major characters. Rele ...
'' held the record with 3 million copies sold in one year followed by ''
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest ''The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest'' (original title in sv, Luftslottet som sprängdes, lit=The castle in the air that blew up) is the third novel in the best-selling ''Millennium'' series by Swedish writer Stieg Larsson.; It was pub ...
'' by
Stieg Larsson Karl Stig-Erland "Stieg" Larsson (, ; 15 August 1954 – 9 November 2004) was a Swedish writer, journalist, and activist. He is best known for writing the ''Millennium'' trilogy of crime novels, which were published posthumously, starting in 2 ...
and ''
Go Set a Watchman ''Go Set a Watchman'' is a novel written by Harper Lee before her Pulitzer Prize-winning ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' (1960), her only other published novel. Although ''Go Set a Watchman'' was initially promoted as a sequel by its publisher, it i ...
'' by
Harper Lee Nelle Harper Lee (April 28, 1926February 19, 2016) was an American novelist best known for her 1960 novel ''To Kill a Mockingbird''. It won the 1961 Pulitzer Prize and has become a classic of modern American literature. Lee has received numero ...
which sold 1.6 million copies each. In nonfiction, more than half of the hardcover books that make the list are in the biography category. The autobiography of George W. Bush, ''
Decision Points ''Decision Points'' is a memoir by former U.S. President George W. Bush. It was released on November 9, 2010, and the release was accompanied by national television appearances and a national tour. The book surpassed sales of two million copies ...
'', sold the most copies in one year followed by the biography ''
Steve Jobs Steven Paul Jobs (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011) was an American entrepreneur, industrial designer, media proprietor, and investor. He was the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Apple; the chairman and majority shareholder of Pixar; a ...
'' by
Walter Isaacson Walter Seff Isaacson (born May 20, 1952) is an American author, journalist, and professor. He has been the President and CEO of the Aspen Institute, a nonpartisan policy studies organization based in Washington, D.C., the chair and CEO of CNN, ...
.


Criticisms

The list has been criticized by authors, publishers, book industry executives, and others for not providing an accurate accounting of true best-seller status. These criticisms have been ongoing ever since the list originated. A book industry report in the 1940s found that best-seller lists were a poor indicator of sales, since they were based on misleading data and were only measuring fast sales (see "fast sale" criticism below). A 2004 report quoted a senior book marketing executive who said the rankings were "smoke and mirrors"; while a report in ''
Book History ''Book History'' is the official publication of the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing. It was established in 1998 and is published annually by the Johns Hopkins University Press. ''Book History'' is an academic journa ...
'' found that many professionals in the book industry "scoffed at the notion that the lists are accurate". Specific criticisms include: *Fast sales. A book that never makes the list can actually outsell books on the best-seller list. This is because the best-seller list reflects sales in a given week, not total sales. Thus, one book may sell heavily in a given week, making the list, while another may sell at a slower pace, never making the list, but selling more copies over time. *Double counting. By including wholesalers in the polls along with retail bookstores, books may be double-counted. Wholesalers report how much they sell to retailers, and retailers report how much they sell to customers, thus there can be overlap with the same reported book being sold twice within a given time frame. In addition, retailers may return books to wholesalers months later if they never sell, thus resulting in a "sale" being reported that never came to fruition. For example, mass-market paperbacks can see as high as 40% return rates from the retailer back to the wholesaler. *Manipulation by authors and publishers. In 1956, author Jean Shepherd created the fake novel ''
I, Libertine ''I, Libertine'' is a literary hoax novel that began as a practical joke by late-night radio raconteur Jean Shepherd who aimed to lampoon the process of determining best-selling books. After generating substantial attention for a novel that didn ...
'' to illustrate how easy it was to manipulate the best-seller lists based on demand, as well as sales. Fans of Shepherd's radio show planted references to the book and author so widely that demand for the book led to claims of it being on the ''Times'' list. Author
Jacqueline Susann Jacqueline Susann (August 20, 1918 – September 21, 1974) was an American novelist and actress. Her iconic novel, '' Valley of the Dolls'' (1966), is one of the best-selling books in publishing history. With her two subsequent works, '' The Lov ...
(''
Valley of the Dolls Valley of the Dolls may refer to: * ''Valley of the Dolls'' (novel), a 1966 novel by Jacqueline Susann ** ''Valley of the Dolls'' (film), a 1967 film adapted from the novel *** " (Theme from) Valley of the Dolls", the title song from the film, pe ...
'') attempted to "butter-up" ''Times''-reporting booksellers and personally bought large quantities of her own book. Author
Wayne Dyer Wayne Walter Dyer (May 10, 1940 – August 29, 2015) was an American self-help author and a motivational speaker. Dyer completed a Ed.D. in guidance and counseling at Wayne State University in 1970. Early in his career, he worked as a high sch ...
(''
Your Erroneous Zones ''Your Erroneous Zones'' is the first self-help book written by Wayne Dyer and first issued by Funk & Wagnalls publishers in April 1976. It is one of the top-selling books of all time, with an estimated 35 million copies sold. The book spent 6 ...
'') purchased thousands of copies of his own book. Al Neuharth (''Confessions of an S. O. B.''), former head of
Gannett Company Gannett Co., Inc. () is an American mass media holding company headquartered in McLean, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.The Discipline of Market Leaders ''The Discipline of Market Leaders'' is a 1995 non-fiction book written by Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema and published by Addison-Wesley. The book discusses competitive business strategies. It made ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list afte ...
'' from dozens of bookstores. Although they denied any wrongdoing, the book spent 15 weeks on the list. As a result of this scandal the ''Times'' began placing a dagger symbol next to any title for which bookstores reported bulk orders. However, daggers do not always appear; for example
Tony Hsieh Anthony Hsieh ( ; December 12, 1973November 27, 2020) was an American internet entrepreneur and venture capitalist. He retired as the CEO of the online shoe and clothing company Zappos in August 2020 after 21 years. Prior to joining Zappos, Hs ...
's ''
Delivering Happiness ''Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose'' (2010) is a book by Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh. It details his life as an entrepreneur, with emphasis on the founding of LinkExchange and Zappos. Background In 2009, Hsieh began writin ...
'' was known to have been manipulated with bulk orders but didn't have a dagger. Companies that contract with authors to manipulate the bestseller list through "bestseller campaigns" include
ResultSource ResultSource is a San Diego-based book marketing company that conducts "bestseller campaigns" on behalf of authors. The company states "'We create campaigns that reach a specific goal, like: "On the bestsellers list," or "100,000 copies sold.'" ...
. *Manipulation by retailers and wholesalers. It happens with regularity that wholesalers and retailers deliberately or inadvertently manipulate the sales data they report to the ''Times''. Since being on the ''Times'' best-seller list increases the sales of a book, bookstores and wholesalers may report a book is a best-seller before it actually is one, in order that it might later become a "legitimate" best-seller through increased sales due to its inclusion on the best-seller list, leading to the best-seller list becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy for the booksellers. *Leading data collection. The ''Times'' provides booksellers with a form containing a list of books it believes might be bestsellers, to check off, with an alternative "Other" column to fill in manually. It's been criticized as a leading technique to create a best-seller list based on books the ''Times'' thinks might be included. One bookseller compared it to a voting card in which two options for president are provided: "Bill Clinton and Other". *Self-fulfilling. Once a book makes it onto the list it is heavily marketed as a "best-seller", purchased by readers who seek out best-sellers, given preferential treatment by retailers, online and offline, who create special best-seller categories including special in-store placement and price discounts, and is carried by retailers that generally don't carry other books (e.g., supermarkets). Thus, the list can become self-fulfilling in determining which books have high sales and remain on the list. *Conflicts of interest. Due to high financial impact of making the list, since the 1970s publishers have created escalator clauses for major authors stipulating that if a book makes the list the author will receive extra money, based on where it ranks and for how long. Authors may also be able to charge higher speaking fees for the status of being a best-seller. As ''
Book History ''Book History'' is the official publication of the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing. It was established in 1998 and is published annually by the Johns Hopkins University Press. ''Book History'' is an academic journa ...
'' said, "With so much at stake then, it is no wonder that enormous marketing effort goes into getting a book access to this major marketing tool."


Controversies

In 1983, author William Peter Blatty sued ''The New York Times'' for $6 million, claiming that his book, '' Legion'' (filmed as ''
The Exorcist III ''The Exorcist III'' is a 1990 American psychological horror film written and directed by William Peter Blatty. It is the third installment in the ''Exorcist'' series, an adaptation of Blatty's ''Exorcist'' novel ''Legion'' (1983), and the fin ...
''), had not been included in the list due to either negligence or intentional falsehood, saying it should have been included due to high sales. The ''Times'' countered that the list was not mathematically objective but rather was editorial content and thus protected under the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...
as free speech. Blatty appealed it to the Supreme Court, which declined to hear the case. Thus, the lower court ruling stood that the list is editorial content, not objective factual content, so the ''Times'' had the right to exclude books from the list. In 1995, Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema, the authors of a book called ''
The Discipline of Market Leaders ''The Discipline of Market Leaders'' is a 1995 non-fiction book written by Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema and published by Addison-Wesley. The book discusses competitive business strategies. It made ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list afte ...
'', colluded to manipulate their book onto the best seller charts. The authors allegedly purchased over 10,000 copies of their own book in small and strategically placed orders at bookstores whose sales are reported to
BookScan BookScan is a data provider for the book publishing industry that compiles point of sale data for book sales, owned by The NPD Group in the United States and the Nielsen Company in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India, South ...
. Because of the benefits of making ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list (speaking engagements, more book deals, and consulting) the authors felt that buying their own work was an investment that would pay for itself. The book climbed to No. 4 on the list where it sat for 15 weeks; it also peaked at No. 1 on the '' BusinessWeek'' best seller list. Since such lists hold the power of
cumulative advantage A preferential attachment process is any of a class of processes in which some quantity, typically some form of wealth or credit, is distributed among a number of individuals or objects according to how much they already have, so that those who ...
, chart success often begets more chart success. Although such efforts are not illegal, publishers consider them unethical. In 1999,
Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential economi ...
announced a 50% decrease in price for books on the Best Seller List to beat its competition,
Barnes & Noble Barnes & Noble Booksellers is an American bookseller. It is a Fortune 1000 company and the bookseller with the largest number of retail outlets in the United States. As of July 7, 2020, the company operates 614 retail stores across all 50 U. ...
. After a legal dispute between Amazon and ''The New York Times'', Amazon was permitted to keep using the list on condition that it displayed it in alphabetical rather than numerical order. By 2010, this was no longer the case; Amazon now displays the best-seller list in order of best-selling titles first. In 2013, ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'' published a story titled "Here's How You Buy Your Way Onto ''The New York Times'' Bestsellers List." The article discusses how
ResultSource ResultSource is a San Diego-based book marketing company that conducts "bestseller campaigns" on behalf of authors. The company states "'We create campaigns that reach a specific goal, like: "On the bestsellers list," or "100,000 copies sold.'" ...
, a San Diego-based marketing consultancy, specializes in ensuring books make a bestseller list, even guaranteeing a No. 1 spot for those willing to pay enough. ''The New York Times'' was informed of this practice and responded: "''The New York Times'' comprehensively tracks and tabulates the weekly unit sales of all titles reported by book retailers as their general interest bestsellers. We will not comment beyond our methodology on the other questions." ''The New York Times'' did not alert its readers to this, unlike ''The Wall Street Journal,'' which admitted that books had landed on its bestseller list due to ResultSource's campaign. Soren Kaplan, the source who admitted he had paid ResultSource to land his book, ''Leapfrogging'', on ''The Wall Street Journal''s bestseller list, revealed the methodology on his blog; he posted: "If I could obtain bulk orders before ''Leapfrogging'' was released, ResultSource would purchase the books on my behalf using their tried-and-true formula. Three thousand books sold would get me on ''The Wall Street Journal'' bestseller list. Eleven thousand would secure a spot on the biggest prize of them all, ''The New York Times'' list." In 2014, the ''Los Angeles Times'' published a story titled "Can bestseller lists be bought?" It describes how author and pastor
Mark Driscoll Mark A. Driscoll (born 1970) is an American evangelical pastor and author who founded the now defunct Mars Hill Church. He is the senior and founding pastor of the Trinity Church in Scottsdale, Arizona, which was founded in 2016. In 1996, Dr ...
contracted the company ResultSource to place his book ''
Real Marriage ''Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together'' is a 2012 marriage book written by Christian author Mark Driscoll and his wife, Grace, and published by Thomas Nelson. The book spent one week on the ''New York Times'' Best S ...
'' (2012) on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list for a $200,000 fee. The contract was for ResultSource "to conduct a bestseller campaign for your book, ''Real Marriage'' on the week of January 2, 2012. The bestseller campaign is intended to place ''Real Marriage'' on ''The New York Times'' bestseller list for the Advice How-to list." To achieve this, the contract stated that "RSI will be purchasing at least 11,000 total orders in one week." This took place, and the book successfully reached No.1 on the hardcover advice bestseller list on January 22, 2014. In July 2015,
Ted Cruz Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States Senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz served as Solicitor General of Texas from ...
's book ''A Time For Truth'' was excluded from the list because the "overwhelming preponderance of evidence was that sales
f Cruz's book F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''. Hist ...
were limited to strategic bulk purchases" to artificially increase sales and entry onto the list. In response, Cruz called the ''Times'' "a liar" and demanded an apology. The ''Times'' said it stood by its statement and evidence of manipulation. In August 2017, a young adult fiction book, ''
Handbook for Mortals ''Handbook for Mortals'' is a 2017 young adult fantasy romance novel by Lani Sarem, first published by Geeknation Press in 2017 and subsequently mass-printed as a hardcover book. The title received media attention for its placement on ''The New ...
'' by previously unpublished author Lani Sarem was removed from the list, where it was in initially in the No. 1 spot. According to a statement issued by the ''Times'', "after investigating the inconsistencies in the most recent reporting cycle, we decided that the sales for ''Handbook for Mortals'' did not meet our criteria for inclusion. We've issued an updated 'Young Adult Hardcover' list for September 3, 2017 which does not include that title." It was uncovered, by author Phil Stamper, that there had been unusual bulk ordering patterns which inflated the number of sales. The book is published by GeekNation, an entertainment website based in Los Angeles. The book was originally written as a script, and was rewritten as a novel in an attempt to launch a film franchise. In August 2017, conservative publisher
Regnery Publishing Regnery Publishing is a politically conservative book publisher based in Washington, D.C. The company was founded by Henry Regnery in 1947, and is now a division of radio broadcaster Salem Media Group. It is led by President & Publisher Thomas Sp ...
said it would no longer allow its writers to claim to be"''New York Times'' best-selling authors" due to its belief that the ''Times'' favors liberal books on the list. The ''Times'' responded that the political views of authors have no bearing on the list and noted conservative authors routinely rank highly on the list. The
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
noted the ''Times'' is a frequent target of conservatives and Republicans. ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' called Regenery's ban a "stunt" designed to increase sales, "What better way to sell a book to a conservative audience than to promote the idea that the ''New York Times'' doesn't like it?" The ''Post'' compared the list to best seller lists from ''Publishers Weekly'' looking for bias but could not find anything convincing. In February 2018, the ''
Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...
'' published a story by books editor Deborah Dundas who found that the best-selling book ''
12 Rules for Life ''12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos'' is a 2018 self-help book by the Canadian clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson. It provides life advice through essays in abstract ethical principles, psychology, mythology, religion, and personal ane ...
'' by
Jordan Peterson Jordan Bernt Peterson (born 12 June 1962) is a Canadian media personality, clinical psychologist, author, and professor emeritus at the University of Toronto. He began to receive widespread attention as a public intellectual in the late 2010s ...
, who topped ''Publishers Weekly'' chart list, did not even chart on ''The New York Times'' bestsellers list, without reliable answers from the ''New York Times''. The ''Times'' stated it was not counted because it was published by a Canadian company. According to Random House Canada, the book was handled properly for the U.S. market. American conservative commentator
Dennis Prager Dennis Mark Prager (; born August 2, 1948) is an American conservative radio talk show host and writer. He is the host of the nationally syndicated radio talk show ''The Dennis Prager Show''. In 2009, he co-founded PragerU, which creates five-m ...
wrote an article for '' National Review'' titled "''The Times'' Best-Seller List: Another Reason Americans Don't Trust the Media" in which he contends that the issue with Peterson's book, as well his ''The Rational Bible: Exodus'', is their conservative context and the lack of inclusion is the American mainstream media's manipulation. The ''Times'' denied any bias. In 2019, the release of
Donald Trump, Jr. Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinterpretation of the ...
's book ''Triggered'' was shown to have only reached the best-seller list through approximately $100,000 in behind-the-scenes bulk purchases meant to pump up its sales numbers illegitimately. '' Vanity Fair'' reported in October 2020 that this sort of gaming of the system has been a common practice among American conservative political figures, and has also included the use of political campaign funds to purchase the books in bulk in order to boost their rank on the list.


Studies

A Stanford Business School analysis suggests that the "majority of book buyers seem to use the ''Times'' list as a signal of what's worth reading". See also Alan T. Sorensen, ''Bestseller Lists and Product Variety: The Case of Book Sales'', May 2004. The study concluded that lesser-known writers get the biggest benefit from being on the list, while perennial best-selling authors, such as John Grisham or
Danielle Steel Danielle Fernandes Dominique Schuelein-Steel (born August 14, 1947) is an American writer, best known for her romance novels. She is the bestselling author alive and the fourth-bestselling fiction author of all time, with over 800 million ...
, see no benefit of additional sales.


See also

* Lists of ''The New York Times'' Fiction Best Sellers * Lists of ''The New York Times'' Non-Fiction Best Sellers * Lists of ''The New York Times'' Manga Best Sellers * Oprah's Book Club * ''Publishers Weekly'' lists of bestselling novels in the United States


References


Further reading

* *   ontroversy regarding the children's list


External links


''The New York Times'' Best Sellers (current)






{{DEFAULTSORT:New York Times Best Seller List 1931 establishments in New York City