What did 2016 mean book-wise? In traditional publishing terms, JK Rowling and Joe Wicks were the hits of the year according to the Guardian.
Rowling’s book, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child the script behind the successful West End play, was also backed up by her screenplay for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, illustrated editions of the Harry Potter books and a colouring book.
Meanwhile, online health and fitness guru Joe Wicks is described as “the publishing sensation of 2016”. His books were the only ones to appear every week in the official top 50 chart, and 12 times at the number one slot.
Nielsen BookScan reports annual book sales in the UK rose to just over £1.59 billion last year, up from £1.51 billion the previous year. Actual book sales increased too – from 190 million in 2015 to 195 million last year.
In adult fiction, Paula Hawkins’s The Girl on the Train and JoJo Moyes two books – After You and Me Before You – made their authors more than £15 million in sales.
TV celebrity David Walliams was the other big sales success in children’s fiction. In 2016, his book sales hit the £9 million mark.
Picture thanks to Martin Pettitt on Flickr.
