The saga of captain ahab and his monomaniacal pursuit of the white wh. First published in 1851, melvilles masterpiece is, in elizabeth hardwicks words, the greatest novel in american literature. Book readership in the united states from 2000 to 2012. A list of the 50 greatest books of all time as determined by a panel of secret judges for globe and mail. Incorporated as a notforprofit foundation in 1971, and headquartered in geneva, switzerland, the forum is tied to no political, partisan or national interests.
Bibles are the most common book in the world, especially in the english language. Today, lets talk about the alltime bestselling books. The all time most popular books in the world revealed posted by stylist team. Jan 15, 2007 an 85page appendix providing enlightened summaries of all the works mentioned is worth the price of admission all on its own. Jul 15, 2015 harper lees new novel go set a watchman, the followup to to kill a mockingbird, is set to become one of the fastestselling books of all time. This is a list of literary works including novels, plays, series, collections of poems or short stories, and essays and other forms of literary nonfiction sorted by the number of languages they have been translated into. Its one of those big victorian pictorial family ones and seems to have all kinds of features besides just the old and new testaments. Numbers indicate number of copies sold or printed 1. You went to all the bigname authors in the worldfranzen, mailer, wallace, wolfe, chabon, lethem, king, 125 of them and got each one to cough up a top10 list of the greatest books of all time. The world economic forum is an independent international organization committed to improving the state of the world by engaging business, political, academic and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. What is the most printed book of all time and in your opinion. Writer james chapman created a list of the most read books in the world based on the number of copies each book sold over the last 50 years. People are surprised when they hear that the bible is not only the bestselling book of all time, but also the bestselling book every year, said paul j. Larger public libraries and all academic and scientific libraries have many older books.
These are the 12 most popular books of all time indy100. Having sold more than 500 million copies worldwide, 6 7 8 harry potter by j. Best guess of the top 25 bestselling books of all time. But the reasons for challenging literature change over time.
Homers epic odyssey has been translated the most amount of time into 250 languages, followed by french childrens classic le petit prince. The alltime most popular books in the world revealed stylist. May 22, 2007 weve discussed the top rated tv shows, most popular video games, bestselling albums, and the albums that topped the charts the longest. A best guess of the top 25 bestselling books of all time. This obscure fishing book is one of the most reprinted. All records listed on our website are current and up todate.
My leisure time was spent either gallivanting ahorseback through the rocky mountains surrounding my home, or buried in a. Harper lees new novel go set a watchman, the followup to to kill a mockingbird, is set to become one of the fastestselling books of all time. A survey by the bible society concluded that around 2. What are the top 10 most printed books of all time. Although the fish would likely disagree with this assessment, waltons fellow fishers clearly see something in the idea. Although it is impossible to obtain exact figures, there is little doubt that the bible is the worlds bestselling and most widely distributed book. The statistic presents all time worlds bestselling books as of may 2012. About the story based on john bunyans epic masterpiece, the pilgrims progress is one of the most popular books of all time, and one of the most important stories of our faith.
Mark the books youve shared with your children or they have read, star family favorites, and highlight. Chapman created the list by examining how many individual copies of the books had been printed and sold over the last 50 years. Sep 07, 2010 fifth book in the harry potter series. Writer james chapman created a list of the most read b. Aug 09, 2017 smart news keeping you current this obscure fishing book is one of the most reprinted english books ever the compleat angler is much more than an instruction manual on fishing. The very hungry caterpillar by eric carle, with 1,783,535 sales. Researcher james chapman has compiled this look at the top 10 most read books in the world. All books of a religious, ideological, philosophical or political nature have thus been excluded from the below lists of bestselling books for these reasons. The second and third books, fifty shades darker and fifty shades freed, are also selling fast, with uk.
Additional engagement funding for the great american read is made possible by cpb. This page provides lists of bestselling individual books and book series to date and in any language. Scholars can debate endlessly over which book is the best of all time, but finding out which ones have enjoyed the most commercial success should be a more concrete endeavor. Apr 29, 2018 if someone asks you to name the alltime bestselling book, youd most likely answer the bible. Weve discussed the top rated tv shows, most popular video games, bestselling albums, and the albums that topped the charts the longest. Yes, as most books are out of print at any given time. The 10 most expensive books in the world the atlantic. Because this book is in the public domain and has been published in numerous editions by hundreds of publishers over the last 150 years, its impossible to ascertain the exact number of copies sold. Here are the 10 best selling books of all time with their estimated sales figures. Post article actually named 16 books that have sold the most copies worldwide. Stockbyte getty images scholars can debate endlessly over which book is the best of all time, but finding out which ones have enjoyed the most commercial success should be a more concrete endeavor.
Some titles may have had more copies printed than some of these books, but a vast number of those books were not sold, so well assume that they did not get read. Last year i purchased an old bible at a church festival. The 21 bestselling books of all time howstuffworks. Top 10 most published books of all time posted on may 14, 2018 january 29, 2019 les listes is a participant in the amazon services llc associates program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to and affiliated sites. Writer james chapman created a list of the most read books in the world based on the number of copies each book sold over the last 50 years he found.
This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. Caminiti, vice president and publisher of bibles at zondervan, to the christian post. According to guinness world records as of 1995, the bible is the bestselling book of all time, with an estimated 5 billion copies sold and distributed. With thousands of translations, over forty original authors, and a two millennium history, lets take a look at the trails, tribulations, changes, and status of the worlds most popular book. Bestselling books are ranked by number of copies sold, not my personal ratings. The most popular book of all time christian universities. The most printed book of all time the antiques almanac. Second to the bible in total copies and translations, the story was written by john bunyan a pastor, imprisoned for sharing his faith. Researchers have collated the figures for the number of editions, translations and copies sold of the worlds most popular books these are the most loved tomes. List of literary works by number of translations wikipedia. Since the invention of the printing press in mid1400s, the holy bible has been the most printed book in all of world history, at an estimated 6 billion copies. The alltime most popular books in the world revealed. Take a look at a list of the top 100 books of all time, nominated by writers from around the world, from things fall apart to mrs dalloway, and from pride and prejudice to don quixote.
The bible tops the list of the most read books in the world. See how it compares to the top 100 bestsellers of all time. A tale of two cities charles dickens over 200 million copies sold. The third highest selling print is quotations from chairman mao tsetung, a book of. May 09, 2012 number of books read in the past 12 months in the u. Yes, its doubtful anyone can compile a completely accurate list of the top sellers of all time, given the notoriously unreliable nature of book sales statistics. Unsurprisingly, the most popular book of all time has an interesting history. Many of the books that make up the final 20 are hundreds in one case thousands of years old, proving that the best works really do stand the test of time. First published in 1859, this novel by charles dickens examines the class struggles that lead to the french revolution, and the uncomfortable truth that sometimes the revolutionaries are worse than the establishment. Turns out the koran is top of the pops getty its not exactly a ripping yarn, but the koran is the most popular book of all time. F or as long as humans have printed books, censors have argued over their content and tried to limit some books distribution. Read about the most popular books in history at howstuffworks.
The 20 most influential books in history world economic. May 08, 2002 take a look at a list of the top 100 books of all time, nominated by writers from around the world, from things fall apart to mrs dalloway, and from pride and prejudice to don quixote. Because this book is in the public domain and has been published in numerous editions by hundreds of publishers over the. Jun 02, 2014 the best selling books of all time are hard to list, as reliable sales figures are hard to find, especially for the bible and the quran, the most printed books of all time. Leveraction rifles stood in corners, holstered peacemakers hung from pegs, and not a tv was to be found. The bible and quotations from chairman mao still vie for the top spot, with more than 6 billion published copies each by noel l. Comics and textbooks are not included in this list. The religious text has been translated into 50 different. This page provides lists of bestselling individual books and book series to date and in any.
The quran is also widely reported to be one of the most printed and distributed books worldwide. As you can see from the graphic below created by designer jared fanning, the bible leads the countdown by a large margin, with nearly 4 billion copies printed and sold globally in. The book alcoholics anonymous is not in the top ten books of all time. The holy texts of christianity and islam, respectively, these books have been printed billions of times. We can just look at the sales numbers and rank them. Best selling refers to the estimated number of copies sold of each book, rather than the number of books printed or currently owned.
Inspired by the huffington posts attempt to list the top 15 bestselling books of all time, we offer a humble revision, expanding the list to 25 total. Nov 15, 20 researcher james chapman has compiled this look at the top 10 most read books in the world. The most popular book of all time is the koran, not jk. The most widely printed book in history is the christian bible. The books are listed according to the highest sales estimate as reported in reliable, independent sources. Amazon is able to buy all or most of the books printed by a publisher. Top 10 most read books in the world based on number of books printed and sold over the last 50 years. Stockbyte getty images scholars can debate endlessly over which book is the best of all time, but finding out which ones have enjoyed the most commercial success should be. Also, it is worth noting that some religious and political books such as the bible, quran, and quotations from chairman mao are believed to. This page includes a list of the 25 bestselling books of all time as well as the 25 bestselling book series of all time. The top 10 most published books of all time les listes. An expert panel of academic book sellers, librarians and publishers nominated 200 titles, and members of the public were asked to vote online for their top 20. The bible is easily one of the bestselling books of all time, but exact sales numbers are hard to nail down.
Zondervan is both the worlds leading bible publisher and the publisher of the purpose driven life. Christian books still dominate alltime bestsellers lists. I would love to own a copy of i was a doctor in auschwitz written by gisella perl. The great american read is made possible by the anne ray foundation and public television viewers. May 30, 2018 the most prolific and popular novel of all time, don quixote, is a testament to how great storytelling has no expiration date.
The most popular book of all time unsurprisingly, the most popular book of all time has an interesting history. This reading list shares the bestselling books of alltime and breaks down the. But to get you started, here, in all its glory, is the alltime, ultimate top top 10 list, derived from the top 10 lists of 125 of the worlds most celebrated writers combined. Jamess fifty shades of grey, you might think thats the most popular book in the world. May 02, 2017 the most printed book of all time question. The number 200 million is controversial however, considering that the book is regularly on the required reading lists of students in the u. What is the most printed books of all time answers. The 20 most influential books in history world economic forum. A 208 page book written in 2009 by journalist and author andrew taylor. As you can see from the graphic below created by designer jared fanning, the bible leads the countdown by a large margin. And for more classic reading content, check out these 40 books every women over 40 should have on her bookshelf.
The book has remained in the top slot in the uk bestseller lists for the 16th week running. Three thousand books lined the walls of my childhood home. Quotations from chairman mao zedong, mao zedong, 900 million. Agree with the content or not, but the bible is the most printed book in history by a long margin. There is not just one most famous kids book of all time. Apr 11, 2007 i noticed that your answer to the top ten most printed books of all time is pulled from wikipedias best selling books of all time. The most popular book of all time christian universities online. Reading books on ipads in the united states in 2012. The four hundredth anniversary of the printing of the first english bible is an event of great significance. However, there are a couple of books that most experts agree are probably two of the most popular books of all time. In the september the huffington post published an article by alexander carr listing the 15 top. There are more and more people becoming christians all over the world. Then you printed and collated all the lists, crunched the numbers together, and used them to create a definitive all time top top 10 list.
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