Making the List: A Cultural History of the American Bestseller, 1900-1999
By Michael Korda
Product Details
Amazon Sales Rank: #641874 in Books
Published on: 2001-10
Number of items: 1
Binding: Hardcover
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
According to Korda (Country Matters, etc.), it was only in 1895 that someone Harry Thurston Peck of the Bookman published the first bestseller list, and that listed only fiction. PW ran the first nonfiction list 17 years later. Today, bestseller lists galvanize the publishing industry, much as their cousins do the film and recording industries, among others. Of the several books written about bestseller lists (most notably, Alice Payne Hackett and James Henry Burke's 80 Years of Best Sellers, 1977), this is the most perceptive and not surprisingly, given Korda's literary abilities, which have led to his own run of bestselling books the most engaging. The engagement arises from Korda's erudite yet conversational tone, leavened with humor and smartly opinionated (e.g., the 1958 nonfiction bestseller list, he writes, "remained the kind of thumping, predictable bore it had been through most of the fifties"). The perceptivity arises not only because Korda, longtime editor in chief of S&S, knows just about all that's worth knowing about books, but because he approaches the lists as the subtitle indicates. Decade by decade, he examines the annual hardcover lists drawn from PW beginning with 1913 to see how the books people buy embody the cultural tenor of the times. "Like a mirror," he writes, "[the list] reflects who we are, what we want, what interests us...." Korda finds, for instance, that "[books about] better sex, more sex, plus tabletop cooking, says something about the priorities of Americans in the first year of Richard Nixon's presidency.... People were looking for domestic happiness, in retreat from the... conflicts of the sixties.... " As Korda charts changes in America via the bestseller list, he demonstrates that reading tastes haven't altered all that much; as background to that charting, he presents a useful, compact history of the publishing industry. Witty and deeply informed, this is a bracing, even essential, read for anyone who loves books. (On-sale Nov. 15).
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
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Customer Reviews
A Valuable Resource for Every Would-Be Book Author
Here's a fascinating look at the bestseller lists from the last century from a true expert and long-time book editor, Michael Korda. I appreciated this cultural look at what makes the list.
In his introduction, Korda writes, "Despite the inherent suspicion on the part of authors that the list is manipulated by somebody, in fact it isn't controlled by publishers any more than it is by bookstores. Of course many of the books on it are reasonably predictable--particularly novels by big, established authors--but at least half of the books on any given week's bestseller list are there to the immense surprise and puzzlement of their publishersd."
See the hope for authors built into the information about bestseller lists? I often recommend this title to writers.
A Skimpy Guide
Korda is certainly as intimate with the American bestseller list as it is possible for anyone to be, he's appeared as a writer on both the fiction (1985 for Queenie) and non-fiction (1975 for Power!) lists, and edited something like 40-50 bestsellers during his long tenure at the Simon & Shuster publishing house. However, his intimacy does not really translate into the deep insights and analysis that most readers will be looking for. The book's ten chapters each cover a decade, with a skimpy essay followed by the decade's year-by-year list. The essays attempt to draw parallels between the decade's zeitgeist and the books that appeared on the bestseller list -- and to a certain very superficial extent, this is accomplished. However, as Korda himself points out, until very recently bestseller lists didn't address the huge paperback market. And it is this less pricey market which might more accurately reflect popular tastes! Nor does Korda spend much time explaining how the bestseller lists are constructed, a process whose methodology might further skew results.
In any event, Korda does make a few interesting propositions. Foremost is the notion that American reading tastes are cyclical, and you can look at any decade and find the same kinds of books as might appear in another. For example, historical fiction ebbs and flows, as does the women's novel, political biography, and so forth. And self-help, cooking, diet, and "fad" books (such as crossword books, or game guides), have been around since the beginning. Korda is also keen to point out that the public's taste is not as low-brow as many characterize it, and presents many examples of good serious fiction from the years. Along the way, he touches upon major changes in publishing and the bookselling industry (such as the rise of discounting during the Depression, and rise of mall and chain bookstores in the 70s), but again, not in as much depth as one might like. Indeed, the whole book is a rather superficial riff on the topic, with the actual text totaling only about 100 pages. It's perhaps best read as a reminder to forgotten works that one might want to seek out.
It isn't the books,it's the book business.
I just came across this book a couple of days ago at my local 'big box bookstore'.I enjoy 'books about books'and this one certainly falls into that category.I have never paid much attention to bestseller lists for a couple of reasons.First,I tend to read mainly non fiction.I have found the fiction writers I enjoy,and except for Steinbeck,Twain and one or two others, are not on the bestseller lists.So,of all the fiction out there,new and old,I find so much to read that I don't need a list to tell me what is a bestseller and must be read.Although I have read several of the best seller writers,I haven't been enthused enough to read all their stuff;Larry McMurtry being the exception.I guess he falls into the one a year bestsellers;
but even some of his are getting to feel like publish or perish books.To me, it seems that with most artists their early stuff is the best.I find that so with Steinbeck,Erskine Caldwell,McMurtry and most of my favorite writers.
Merle Haggard once stated that his earlier work was his best because he lived the experiences then but not any longer.I find the same with authors.
I found this book very good in that it demonstrates that best seller lists are something created and pushed by the book publishing and selling industry,and for their interests and not necessarily the buyers and readers of their products.In other words,it is primarily a marketing tool,and while probably very useful to them,not particularyy for the reader who finds his own treasures to read;and doesn't just read to follow what is being pushed in the media.
The book business has had a very rough ride in the last several years and has tended to play catch up or as often said,"lead the parade from the rear."This is very evident from reading this book.The customer (reader)will decide what to read not the marketeer.No matter how much the establishment tries to push their preference it doesn't change anything.
A couple of statements in the book are very telling:
"the bestseller list began to resemble a club that was hard to break into" pg.172
"Do you guys realize how much money the company would make if you only published bestsellers?" pg.173
""a publishing house that plays it safe,even if it satisfies
it's corporate parent,will sooner or later collapse." pg.197
"the bestseller lists of the nineties made for relatively depressing reading,except to accountants." pg.199
"In 1990,for example,the fiction list for the year contained not a single newcomer-all fifteen who made it were established,familiar bestselling writers,most of them on a yearly basis.It was,if you like,the triumph of brand-name merchandizing applied to books." pg.196. In other words the lazy approach.
A great read to see what bestseller lists are all about.
