The Midnight Library tops most sold fiction list
Matt Haig’s award-winning book, The Midnight Library leads the way, alongside Delia Owens’ coming-of-age story, Where the Crawdads Sing, which is now being turned into a film by Reese Witherspoon. Maggie O’Farrell’s Hamnet which won the Women’s Prize for Fiction last year and Shuggie Bain by Stuart Douglas which wowed the judges to win the Booker Prize in 2020 show the staying power of such books to remain high in the charts for the second year running.
Heavyweight new entries by Kazuo Ishiguro with Klara and the Sun and Sally Rooney with Beautiful World, Where Are You also make the top ten.
Cooking, cleaning and organizing books lead most sold non-fiction list
In a year in which people have still been spending a lot more time at home, the non-fiction charts are dominated by cooking, cleaning and organizing books with Kay Featherstone’s Pinch of Nom Series featuring no fewer than three times in the top ten, with Pinch of Nom Quick & Easy: 100 Delicious, Slimming Recipes taking the top spot. Stacey Solomon’s Tap To Tidy: Organising, Crafting & Creating Happiness in a Messy World comes in at second place.
While celebrity autobiographies might have been kept off the top spots, there are still autobiographies from Bob Mortimer, Dave Grohl, Miriam Margolyes and Paul McCartney high in the year’s non-fiction charts showing the format is still popular with the British public.
The Midnight Library also tops most read list
The Midnight Library also tops the most read list, which includes e-books and audio books on Audible in addition to physical copies. It is closely followed by runaway success The Thursday Murder Club, by Richard Osman and Where The Crawdads Sing, while Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling remains a perennial favourite in fourth spot.
Klara and the Sun takes top spot in Amazon’s ‘Best Books of the Year' longlist
Amazon’s ‘Best Books of the Year’ longlist, chosen by their editorial team, agreed with the public in also singling out Klara and the Sun and Beautiful World Where Are You, alongside an array of works by new writers including Taste by Stanley Tucci, Detransition Baby by Torrey Peters, and The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margo by Margaret Cronin, and established literary heavyweights such as Haruki Murakami with his collection of short stories, First Person Singular.
“We’ve been lucky to have a breathtaking array of brilliant books to choose from while we’ve been in and out of lockdown over the past year and the British public have shown they have wide ranging tastes from crime to cookery and romance to real life stories,” commented Lisa de Meyer, UK Books Country Manager at Amazon.co.uk.
“And with our own ‘Best Books of the Year’ list, we’re delighted to shine a light on debut novels such as The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot as well as new releases from literary giants like Kazuo Ishiguro and Haruki Murakami.”
Amazon Charts showcases the top 20 most sold and most read books of every week. Amazon’s Most Sold charts rank books according to the number of copies sold and pre-ordered, while Amazon’s Most Read charts rank titles by the average number of daily Kindle readers and Audible listeners each week.
Selected titles will appear on digital billboards in London’s Leicester Square and at Old Street roundabout as part of a campaign to inspire reading this Christmas.
This Year in Books by Amazon Charts: Top Ten Most Sold (Fiction)
1. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
2. Harry Potter Children’s Collection: The Complete Collection by J. K Rowling
3. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
4. Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell
5. Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
6. The Missing Sister by Lucinda Riley
7. Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
8. Better off Dead by Lee Child
9. American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
10. Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
This Year in Books by Amazon Charts: Top Ten Most Sold (Non-Fiction)
1. Pinch of Nom Quick & Easy: 100 Delicious, Slimming Recipes by Kay Featherstone
2. Tap to Tidy: Organising, Crafting & Creating Happiness in a Messy World by Stacey Solomon
3. Jane’s Patisserie: Deliciously customisable cakes, bakes and treats by Jane Dunn
4. Pinch of Nom: 100 Slimming, Home-style Recipes by Kay Featherstone & Kate Allinson
5. Pinch of Nom Everyday Light: 100 Tasty, Slimming Recipes All Under 400 Calories by Kay Featherstone
6. Good Vibes, Good Life: How Self-Love Is the Key to Unlocking Your Greatness by Vex King
7. Atomic Habits by James Clear
8. And Away... by Bob Mortimer
9. The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music by Dave Grohl
10. The Fast 800 Easy: Quick and simple recipes to make your 800-calorie days even easier by Dr Clare Bailey
This Year in Books by Amazon Charts: Top Ten Most Read
1. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
2. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
3. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
4. Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
5. American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
6. The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri
7. Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
8. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
9. Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
10. Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
Amazon’s Best Books of the Year
1. Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
2. Taste by Stanley Tucci
3. Detransition Baby by Torrey Peters
4. The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot by Marianne Cronin
5. The Appeal by Janice Hallett
6. First Person Singular by Haruki Murakami
7. The Comfort Book by Matt Haig
8. Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
9. A Cook’s Book: The Essential Nigel Slater by Nigel Slater
10. An Island by Karen Jennings
Find out more about This Year in Books.
