Best Selling Books
Best selling books lists are released with such regularity, that they are probably custom-made to suit each reader's taste, with lists for fiction, non fiction, adults, young adults and kids. Here is an unadulterated, pure list of the books that have sold the most over the years.
"There's a certain kind of conversation you have from time to time at parties in New York about a new book. The word "banal" sometimes rears its by-now banal head; you say 'under-edited,' I say 'derivative.' The conversation goes around and around various literary criticisms, and by the time it moves on one thing is clear; no one read the book; we just read the reviews."
Maybe Anna Quindlen has it right about reading habits in today's world. But if the list of the world's best selling books of all times is anything to go by, then maybe the dying habit of reading has still some hope. So what, if the topmost on the list is a religious scripture that has had almost two millennia to reach there. We can take solace in the fact that the book on number 10 was released seven years ago.
Top Ten Books of All Time
Though it is difficult to determine the actual number of copies of the books listed below that have been sold, these tomes are sure to rank among the best. These volumes are widely read and have been around, in the case of some of them, for not only centuries but also millennia. So here is a list of the best books so far.
Bible: With over 2400 of the 6900 languages in the world having access to a part or the whole text of the Holy Bible, the scripture held sacred by the Hebrew and Christians alike, remains on the top of the list. First published between 70 BC and 105 AD, approximately 2.5 billion to 6 billion copies of the Bible have been sold so far.
Quotations from Chairman Mao Zedong: It would have been a little difficult to not have this book more well-known as The Little Red Book, in our list; after being first published in 1964, it became compulsory in China for every Chinese adult to own a copy of the book. This rule was applicable for five years between 1966 and 1971.
The Qur'an: With approximate sales of almost 800 million copies, the religious text of Islam, Koran or Qur'an is believed to have been divulged to Prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel over a period of 23 years, from when he was forty years old, till his death. The Qur'an describes itself as a book which guides.
Xinhua Zidian: Plainly speaking, this book is a Chinese dictionary, published by the Commercial Press. First published in 1957, the dictionary is now in its tenth edition. This edition includes almost 3500 compounds and 11,200 logograms. In English language phonetics, compounds are words that when joined together form a word that has a totally different meaning as compared to the words it was formed from. Logograms are visual symbols that represent words.
A Tale of Two Cities: Written by Charles Dickens in 1859, the novel has sold almost 200 million copies till date. Based in the two cities of London and Paris, the book draws parallels between the social circumstances in both cities. The book, in comparison to other works by Dickens, had fewer sub-plots and was published on a weekly basis unlike his earlier novels which had monthly installments.
The Book of Mormon: Sales figures of this sacred text, first published in 1830 by Joseph Smith Jr., have reached almost 150 million. Smith claimed to have received the teachings from the angel of God, Moroni. Critics of Smith claim that he fabricated the book, but his followers believe that the book has been created by divine inspiration.
The Lord of the Rings: An epic fantasy extravaganza written by J. R. R. Tolkien, between 1937 and 1949. Though the series is now famous as a trilogy, the book was originally written as one book. It chronicles the adventures to destroy the One Ring, created by Sauron, that holds the power to control all other Rings of Power.
And Then There Were None: With almost 100 million sales till date, this little masterpiece about ten people tricked into coming to an island and then mysteriously murdered one after one, has captured the imagination of many generations. Written by Agatha Christie and published in 1939, the book has been adapted into innumerable plays, films and has even spawned a video game.
The Hobbit: Another Tolkien masterpiece, which is a prequel to the Lord of the Rings, it was published in 1937 to widespread critical acclaim and commercial success. It chronicles the adventures of the hobbit, Bilbo Baggins as he sets forth on a journey to capture a part of the treasure guarded by the dragon Smaug.
The Da Vinci Code: Published in 2003, this novel written by Dan Brown, follows the trail of Robert Langdon and Sophie Nevue, as while investigating a murder, they discover the possibility of Jesus Christ having married Mary Magdalene and even fathered a child. The sales of this book reached phenomenal peaks with about 80 million copies sold till date, thanks to the controversy surrounding it. After all, any publicity is good publicity.
There are several other books like Dracula, the works by Shakespeare, Don Quixote and others which have very high sales numbers but have not been listed because of the unreliability of the numbers. But these are books everyone should read. Not being listed amongst best selling books does not take away from the widespread popularity that these tomes enjoy. After all, like Daniel Boorstin puts it, "A best-seller was a book which somehow sold well because it was selling well."
Maybe Anna Quindlen has it right about reading habits in today's world. But if the list of the world's best selling books of all times is anything to go by, then maybe the dying habit of reading has still some hope. So what, if the topmost on the list is a religious scripture that has had almost two millennia to reach there. We can take solace in the fact that the book on number 10 was released seven years ago.
Top Ten Books of All Time
Though it is difficult to determine the actual number of copies of the books listed below that have been sold, these tomes are sure to rank among the best. These volumes are widely read and have been around, in the case of some of them, for not only centuries but also millennia. So here is a list of the best books so far.
Bible: With over 2400 of the 6900 languages in the world having access to a part or the whole text of the Holy Bible, the scripture held sacred by the Hebrew and Christians alike, remains on the top of the list. First published between 70 BC and 105 AD, approximately 2.5 billion to 6 billion copies of the Bible have been sold so far.
Quotations from Chairman Mao Zedong: It would have been a little difficult to not have this book more well-known as The Little Red Book, in our list; after being first published in 1964, it became compulsory in China for every Chinese adult to own a copy of the book. This rule was applicable for five years between 1966 and 1971.
The Qur'an: With approximate sales of almost 800 million copies, the religious text of Islam, Koran or Qur'an is believed to have been divulged to Prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel over a period of 23 years, from when he was forty years old, till his death. The Qur'an describes itself as a book which guides.
Xinhua Zidian: Plainly speaking, this book is a Chinese dictionary, published by the Commercial Press. First published in 1957, the dictionary is now in its tenth edition. This edition includes almost 3500 compounds and 11,200 logograms. In English language phonetics, compounds are words that when joined together form a word that has a totally different meaning as compared to the words it was formed from. Logograms are visual symbols that represent words.
A Tale of Two Cities: Written by Charles Dickens in 1859, the novel has sold almost 200 million copies till date. Based in the two cities of London and Paris, the book draws parallels between the social circumstances in both cities. The book, in comparison to other works by Dickens, had fewer sub-plots and was published on a weekly basis unlike his earlier novels which had monthly installments.
The Book of Mormon: Sales figures of this sacred text, first published in 1830 by Joseph Smith Jr., have reached almost 150 million. Smith claimed to have received the teachings from the angel of God, Moroni. Critics of Smith claim that he fabricated the book, but his followers believe that the book has been created by divine inspiration.
The Lord of the Rings: An epic fantasy extravaganza written by J. R. R. Tolkien, between 1937 and 1949. Though the series is now famous as a trilogy, the book was originally written as one book. It chronicles the adventures to destroy the One Ring, created by Sauron, that holds the power to control all other Rings of Power.
And Then There Were None: With almost 100 million sales till date, this little masterpiece about ten people tricked into coming to an island and then mysteriously murdered one after one, has captured the imagination of many generations. Written by Agatha Christie and published in 1939, the book has been adapted into innumerable plays, films and has even spawned a video game.
The Hobbit: Another Tolkien masterpiece, which is a prequel to the Lord of the Rings, it was published in 1937 to widespread critical acclaim and commercial success. It chronicles the adventures of the hobbit, Bilbo Baggins as he sets forth on a journey to capture a part of the treasure guarded by the dragon Smaug.
The Da Vinci Code: Published in 2003, this novel written by Dan Brown, follows the trail of Robert Langdon and Sophie Nevue, as while investigating a murder, they discover the possibility of Jesus Christ having married Mary Magdalene and even fathered a child. The sales of this book reached phenomenal peaks with about 80 million copies sold till date, thanks to the controversy surrounding it. After all, any publicity is good publicity.
There are several other books like Dracula, the works by Shakespeare, Don Quixote and others which have very high sales numbers but have not been listed because of the unreliability of the numbers. But these are books everyone should read. Not being listed amongst best selling books does not take away from the widespread popularity that these tomes enjoy. After all, like Daniel Boorstin puts it, "A best-seller was a book which somehow sold well because it was selling well."
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