Reviewer & Author Interviewer, Norm Goldman. Norm is the Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com.
He has been reviewing books for the past twenty years after retiring from the legal profession.
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As
Oprah signs off from her daily talk show, closing the chapter on Oprah’s
Book Club, how will this fare for the publishing industry? The Nielsen Company
takes a look at Oprah’s Book Club selections from the past ten years.
The data can be found below and on the Nielsen Wire.
The Oprah Effect: Closing the Book on Oprah’s Book Club
Oprah Winfrey, fairy godmother? For many in the publishing world, that’s not far off. Oprah’s seal of approval, manifested in Oprah’s Book Club, translates to new editions, heightened attention and sales bumps (or jumps, as was sometimes the case). Oprah’s Book Club—with picks ranging from older classics to lesser known works to Pulitzer Prize-winners—became a coveted and exclusive fraternity founded in 1996, with branded special editions selling more than 22 million copies in the past ten years.
As Oprah prepares to sign off from her daily talk show for good, The Nielsen Company takes a look at Oprah’s Book Club selections from the past ten years.
Top 10 Bestselling Oprah’s Book Club Books in the Past 10 Years (US)
RELEASE |
TITLE |
AUTHOR |
OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB EDITION ISBN |
UNIT SALES TO DATE |
January 2005 |
A New Earth |
Eckhart Tolle |
9780452289963 |
3,370,000 |
September 2005 |
A Million Little Pieces |
James Frey |
9780307276902 |
2,695,500 |
January 2006 |
Night |
Elie Wiesel |
9780374500016 |
2,021,000 |
March 2007 |
The Road |
Cormac McCarthy |
9780307387899 |
1,385,000 |
January 2001 |
We Were the Mulvaneys |
Joyce Carol Oates |
9780452282827 |
1,348,000 |
June 2003 |
East of Eden |
John Steinbeck |
9780142004234 |
1,314,000 |
November 2007 |
The Pillars of the Earth |
Ken Follett |
9780451225245 |
1,109,000 |
October 2007 |
Love in the Time of Cholera |
Gabriel García Márquez |
9780307389732 |
817,000 |
March 2001 |
Icy Sparks |
Gwyn Hyman Rubio |
9780142000205 |
794,000 |
October 2008 |
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle |
David Wroblewski |
9780061768064 |
770,000 |
While its undeniable that Oprah’s Book Club delivered mega-sales for its selections, it can be hard to track officially as all editions might have benefited (not just the Oprah edition), including used copies. However, there are some titles that catapulted to bestseller lists following Oprah’s nod. These include:
Oprah Pick #63 (September 17, 2009): Say You’re One of Them by Uwem Akpan (Hachette)
While the trade paperback and hardcover editions sold just 47,500 units together, the Oprah trade paperback sold a whopping 405,000 units—an 853 percent increase.
Edition |
ISBN |
Release |
Price |
Units Sold |
Oprah Trade Paperback edition |
9780316086370 |
9-1-09 |
$14.99 |
405,000 |
Trade Paperback edition |
9780316113953 |
7-1-09 |
$14.99 |
26,000 |
Hardcover edition |
9780316113786 |
6-1-08 |
$23.99 |
21,50 |
Oprah Pick #62 (September 18, 2008): The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski (Ecco)
According to Oprah.com, Oprah compares this book to classics by John Steinbeck and To Kill a Mockingbird's Harper Lee. Sales nearly tripled after being named to Oprah’s Book Club.
Oprah Trade Paperback edition |
9780061768064 |
10-1-08 |
$25.95 |
770,000 |
Hardcover edition |
9780061374227 |
6-1-08 |
$25.95 |
259,000 |
Oprah Pick #57 (May 28, 2007): The Road by Cormac McCarthy (Random House – Knopf/Vintage)
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and named to Oprah’s Book Club in 2007, this title became a movie in 2009, so it’s no surprise that the book has sold more than 1.5 million copies in total. However, P.O. (pre-Oprah), The Road sold just 156,000 units (178,000 copies of the hardcover edition to date); the Oprah trade paperback edition has sold a whopping 1.4 million units.
Oprah Trade Paperback edition |
9780307387899 |
3-1-07 |
$14.95 |
1,385,000 |
Hardcover edition |
9780307265432 |
9-1-06 |
$24.95 |
178,500 |
Oprah Pick #54 (September 22, 2005): Million Little Pieces by James Frey (Random House – Nan A. Talese/Anchor)
Perhaps
the most famous and controversial of Oprah’s picks, Million Little Pieces
was that autobiography that wasn’t. Still, Oprah’s magic worked
wonders. The Oprah trade paperback edition of Million Little Pieces sold a
stunning 2.7 million units, while the hardcover had sold 149,500.
Oprah Trade Paperback edition |
9780307276902 |
9-1-05 |
$15.99 |
2,695,500 |
Hardcover edition |
9780385507752 |
4-1-03 |
$22.95 |
149,500 |
Breakdown of Total Units Sold Since 2001
*All figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred.
Source: Nielsen
BookScan
*Nielsen BookScan's US Consumer Market Panel currently covers approximately 75%
of retail sales and continues to grow. BookScan does not track sales from
Wal-Mart/Sam's Club.