Most-widely read author today

Cafe Society
41

O.K., so this is my personal revised version of the list in the OP:

  1. The Bible - It has sold (Note: “sold” includes given away, since somebody had to pay for the printing) more than 6,000,000,000 copies in an enormous number of languages and different translations in each language.
  2. Quotations from the Works of Mao Tse-Tung by Mao Tse-Tung - It has sold 900,000,000 copies, the majority of them in Chinese.
  3. The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien - It has sold around 150,000,000 copies, including unauthorized editions.
  4. American Spelling Book by Noah Webster - It sold 100,000,000 copies, which had many editions. (I don’t know if each new edition was revised.)
  5. The Guinness Book of World Records - It has sold more than 95,000,000 copies, in many annual editions which are revised each time.
  6. World Almanac - It has sold over 80,000,000 copies, in many editions which are revised each time.
  7. (tie)The McGuffey Readers by William Holmes McGuffey - It sold 60,000,000 copies. (I’m presuming that a copy of this set means the entire set. If that’s not true, and this figure is counting each volume as a separate book, I don’t think that should be allowed. If each separate book was counted toward the 60,000,000 books, this book should be dropped from the list.)
  8. (tie)The Harry Potter Series has sold about 60,000,000 copies of the (not yet complete) series. (I presume that 300,000,000 total copies sold mean about 60,000,000 copies of each book. For the purposes of this list, I think that the entire series should count as one item.)
  9. The Commonsense Book of Child Care by Benjamin Spock - It has sold over 50,000,000 copies, in editions which are revised each time.
  10. A Message to Garcia by Elbert Hubbard - It has sold 40,000,000 copies. This is only a pamphlet really, and most copies were given away.

Honorable Mentions:

In His Steps: “What Would Jesus Do?” by Charles Monroe Sheldon
Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann
Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

These have all sold around 30,000,000 copies.

42

I just have to toss out there that I’ve read To Kill A Mockingbird and have not bought a copy.

“Widely-read” and “sales figures” are two different concepts, IMO.

43

Phew. Judging by what I see at work, I opened this thread expecting to see “Natural Cures “They” Don’t Want You to Know About” included on the list. Now I can go back to the bookstore all renewed and refreshed. :slight_smile:

44

I wrote:

> I presume that 300,000,000 total copies sold mean about 60,000,000 copies of
> each book.

I have just been notified that my bachelors and masters degrees in math have been withdrawn because I was unable to divide 300,000,000 by 6 and get the right answer. If I fix that mistake, here’s my personal revised list:

  1. The Bible - It has sold (Note: “sold” includes given away, since somebody had to pay for the printing) more than 6,000,000,000 copies in an enormous number of languages and different translations in each language.
  2. Quotations from the Works of Mao Tse-Tung by Mao Tse-Tung - It has sold 900,000,000 copies, the majority of them in Chinese.
  3. The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien - It has sold around 150,000,000 copies, including unauthorized editions.
  4. American Spelling Book by Noah Webster - It sold 100,000,000 copies, which had many editions. (I don’t know if each new edition was revised.)
  5. The Guinness Book of World Records - It has sold more than 95,000,000 copies, in many annual editions which are revised each time.
  6. World Almanac - It has sold over 80,000,000 copies, in many editions which are revised each time.
  7. The McGuffey Readers by William Holmes McGuffey - It sold 60,000,000 copies. (I’m presuming that a copy of this set means the entire set. If that’s not true, and this figure is counting each volume as a separate book, I don’t think that should be allowed. If each separate book was counted toward the 60,000,000 books, this book should be dropped from the list.)
  8. The Commonsense Book of Child Care by Benjamin Spock - It has sold over 50,000,000 copies, in editions which are revised each time.
    9 The Harry Potter Series has sold about 50,000,000 copies of the (not yet complete) series. (I presume that 300,000,000 total copies sold mean about 60,000,000 copies of each book. For the purposes of this list, I think that the entire series should count as one item.)
  9. A Message to Garcia by Elbert Hubbard - It has sold 40,000,000 copies. This is only a pamphlet really, and most copies were given away.

Honorable Mentions:

In His Steps: “What Would Jesus Do?” by Charles Monroe Sheldon
Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann
Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

These have all sold around 30,000,000 copies.

I expect that shortly after the seventh book comes out, the number of copies of the Harry Potter series will increase to the point that it reaches number 7 on this list.