PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y., June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- There's continued growth in U.S. print books that explore social justice and race in America. According to The NPD Group, adult non-fiction subjects with a focus on these topics grew 160% (more than 700,000 units), from January through May 2021 compared to last year,
The books with the highest growth rate were titles related to "social science and discrimination." Unit sales in that category grew nearly 200%, year over year, led by a new title this year, "The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prospect Together," by Heather McGhee. Other titles driving growth in these subjects included "Uncomfortable Conversations with A Black Man," by Emmanuel Acho (2020), "This is the Fire: What I Say To My Friends About Racism," by Don Lemon (2021), and "You Are Your Best Thing: Vulnerability, Shame Resilience, and The Black Experience," by Tarana Burke (2021).
"Notably these titles are all frontlist titles published in the last year," said Kristen McLean, books industry analyst for NPD. "In 2020, there was an incredible surge in interest in these topics, and book buyers continue to seek out books that help them understand and address racism. New voices on these subjects continue to find an audience."
Last year, Amistad Press, an imprint of HarperCollins, started the BlackoutBestsellerList hashtag campaign on social media to help support Black writers and demonstrate their power and clout in the publishing industry. The campaign encouraged readers to purchase any two books by Black writers the week of Sunday, June 14 to Saturday, June 20. The week ending June 20 marked the first week that print unit sales volume exceeded 15 million in 2020, aided in part by the success of the campaign and ongoing interest in books related to this cultural conversation.
About NPD Books
With the explosion of the content generated by print books, streaming video-on-demand services, podcasts, and audiobooks, our culture is increasingly dominated by the stories we tell. In this interconnected media landscape, books are where some of today's hottest media properties get their start. But as retail and consumer change accelerates, it can be a challenge to make sense of it all. We work with all the major players in U.S. publishing, retail, media, and toys to understand how digital and print content is evolving. Our books industry experts know the publishing world inside and out; they tap into our point-of-sale data to help you make better and faster decisions in today's market.
About The NPD Group, Inc.
NPD offers data, industry expertise, and prescriptive analytics to help our clients grow their businesses in a changing world. Over 2,000 companies worldwide rely on us to help them measure, predict, and improve performance across all channels, including brick-and-mortar, e-commerce, and B2B. We have services in 19 countries worldwide, with operations spanning the Americas, Europe, and APAC. Practice areas include apparel, appliances, automotive, beauty, books, B2B technology, consumer technology, e-commerce, fashion accessories, food consumption, foodservice, footwear, home, juvenile products, media entertainment, mobile, office supplies, retail, sports, toys, and video games. For more information, visit npd.com. Follow us on Twitter: @npdgroup.
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SOURCE NPD
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