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AT THE beginning of this year, Nielsen published its list of the bestselling books since records began in 1998.
The most striking thing about the list is its utter lack of variety. When it comes to our reading tastes, it seems we’re an atrociously unimaginative bunch.
Out of the top 25, only seven books were not written by Dan Brown, JK Rowling, Stephanie Meyer or Steig Larsson. This filthy-rich foursome made up all of the top 12.
And even more alarmingly, the most popular non-fiction book of the last 12 years was the World According to Clarkson – £7.5 million pounds worth of copies were shifted since Nielsen’s records began.
But if you could go right back to the bookselling, were our tastes always so – well – dull and predictable?
Make your mind up with our slideshow of the bestselling books of all time. Question isn’t have you read all of them – it’s have you actually read any of them? *
* Health warning: there’s no easy way to measure the top bestselling books of all time, especially since copies of religious books like the Bible are often given away free, and it’s impossible to tell how many have been printed. So we’ve compiled our list from the generally agreed figures.
Every year, Travelodge releases the list of the most popular books left behind in its hotels. Simon Cowell’s biography was the book most likely to be left behind last year, closely followed by Ant and Dec’s biography Ooh, What a Lovely Pair.
In third place was Vince Cable’s book on the economic crisis.
Unsurprisingly – given the amount of copies they sell – Dan Brown, Steig Larsson and Stephanie Meyer also made the list.
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3/10 not to bad considering I wouldn’t watch a film with him in it!
@Daniel Kelly: but you’d do a quiz about him ha.
@Daniel Kelly: yes you would, you’ve just too cool to admit it and haven’t got through the Wahlberg collection yet!
@Seaniecp: I done a quiz he just happened to be in it?
@ThatLJD: Wahlbeeg in Shooter is good!
@Daniel Kelly: haven’t seen the rest of the shooters he spawned I take it. Listen you stick to marky mark and the funky bunch and leave real world stuff to real people.
@ThatLJD: Well said! I will try my best oracle…..
@Daniel Kelly: ha, you know it’s true buddy! Shooter, the original, wasn’t horrendous, the others were!
@Daniel Kelly: dogma is brilliant
“Affleck was the bomb in phantoms yo”. If you know you know. :)
@longhandle: what a movie!
My first 10/10 on a Journal quiz and not one guess. Shame on me.
@Larry Whack: I’m scarlet for ya bro
@Larry Whack: Well done
Argo f… Your quiz. Best line in any of his movies! The over eating man’s Val Kilmer of a batman!
@ThatLJD: I concur.
Argh 9 out of 10 not reading the questions… at this stage I think I can make out their way of placing the answers! So close!
@Declan Edward: i got the same, i just got the paycheck question wrong i chose changing lanes
@Pauline Gallagher: same
Gone baby gone is a brilliant movie
@Brian Dunne: no its not.
@Stan Kowalskis: yes it is
@Brian Dunne: it really is. Turns out he’s a better director than actor.
@Dave O’Keeffe: yeah really enjoyed the town and argo also.
Not well at all – thank God
9…….guess I really do watch WAY too many movies
That was a poor quiz subject lads
@Mike McGann: We had Matt Damon a few weeks back, so it was the natural progression of things.
Was this the guy who said if you criticise ISIS you are a racist?
@Pat Coyne: he never said that pal
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