Given two books of equal breadth and quality, why does one stagnate in sales and the other soar and become a bestseller. That's the question that book activist and author Catherine McKenzie is trying to answer. She has recently set up a Facebook group to determine if it is possible that the efforts of a bunch of bloggers, book reviews, and readers can turn a selected book into a bestseller.
I learned of this movement while visiting at The Savvy Reader and immediately clicked through to the Facebook Group and decided to join. Next step was to call my local independent book store, Wordsworth Books, and order Jessica Z by author Shawn Klomparens. Being a special order, it took about two weeks to arrive. Well worth the wait according to the early reviews I've read. This book has been added to my early summer reading list and I will post a review when completed. Let me know if you decide to read this book as a result of my post, or if you join Catherine's Facebook Group. You can also find Catherine at Good Reads.My review of Jessica Z is now posted.
As an aside, Mr. Gladwell is from Elmira, Ontario, which is a short ten kilometre drive from where I live.
Since I have been talking about my summer reads, I want to give you a heads up on a book launch I will be attending on Saturday. Author Della vanDokkumburg will be reading from her children's book The Shoe Tree at the St. Jacobs Country Gardens at 10am - 11:30am. I'll be taking pictures and hopefully speaking with Della about the challenges of writing a children's book.
Photo Credits: I borrowed the poster for The Shoe Tree from Della's website.
The cover photo of The Tipping Point is from my book and the coffee ring on it appears to be a contribution from my hubby.
2 comments:
Interesting bestseller experiment. The press certainly play an important role, and whether they regard the book as ´new´ in some respect. Perhaps it is exactly this newness aspect which makes me skip most bestsellers - unless they receive favourable reviews by bloggers I respect. And quality is something you can find in many places, sometimes very far from the bestseller lists.
I'm interested to hear what you think of Jessica Z. I don't want to say too much...! But I am looking forward to reading your review (it is different).
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