According to guinness world records as of 1995, the bible is the bestselling book of all time, with an estimated 5 billion copies sold and distributed. So some estimates say that quran is the most read book of all time with a whopping 3 billion copies and the king james bible comes to the second spot with 2. Oct 19, 2015 in fact, the very first book printed in english was a translation. The top 10 most published books of all time les listes. This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. May 09, 2017 regular people bring banned christian book to big screen pilgrims progress. The magazine was founded as the golden age on october 1, 1919. Newspapers with the highest circulation in the world.
The book has remained in the top slot in the uk bestseller lists for the 16th week running. Because this book is in the public domain and has been published in numerous editions by hundreds of publishers over the. In the september the huffington post published an article by alexander. It contains 3,958 pages in four volumes and took 10 years to complete. According to the guinness book of world records, the word with the most meanings is set, with 430 senses listed in the 2nd edition of the oxford english dictionary, published in 1989. The alltime most popular books in the world revealed stylist. That can be a good and a bad thing, of course, as it is easy to become obsessed. According to bestselling records, the second most read book is the lord of the rings by j. Tls the hundred most influential books since the second. The quran is the 4th most published book in the world. What is the second most widely read book in the world. Mattie stepanek was born with a rare form of muscular. The most controversial books of all time readers digest. Regardless of what you think of all the entries, if our want to understand the world around you and the people in it, reading these books cover to cover would be a good start.
Jan 03, 2019 the american religious magazine is the 2nd most distributed magazine in the world. Chapman created the list by examining how many individual copies of the books had been printed and sold over the last 50 years. Writer james chapman created a list of the most read books in the world based on the number of copies each book sold over the last 50 years he found. Regular people bring banned christian book to big screen pilgrims progress. It is sold in more than 120 languages and its readership is more than 60 million. Because this book is in the public domain and has been published in numerous editions by hundreds of publishers over the last 150 years, its impossible to ascertain the exact number of copies sold. There have been 820 million copies sold in the last 50 years. Best selling refers to the estimated number of copies sold of each book, rather than the number of books printed or currently owned. Family circle is a monthly published home magazine. The yomiuri shimbun is the most circulated newspaper in the world. The book encompasses cetacean, pinniped, and sirenian species, as well as extinct species, and describes basic biology and taxonomic groupings of marine mammals. Amazon publishing has some amazing levers it can pull. She is the publisher of the hot sheet, the essential newsletter on the publishing industry for authors, and was named publishing commentator of the year by digital book world in 2019.
Top 10 most read books in the world over the past 50 years. It involved the majority of the world s nations, eventually forming two opposing military alliances. They decided to sell the armed forces cheap paperbacks, shipped to units scattered around the globe. Some titles may have had more copies printed than some of these books, but a vast number of those books were not sold, so well assume that they did not get read. The answer is quite surprising at first, but not that unexpected when you think about it. Publishers gave away 122,951,031 books during world war ii.
The most published works by one author is 1,084 by l. What is the second best selling book of all time after. It is the story of the unhealthy obsession of the middleaged literary professor herbert humbert with the 12. A massive undertaking at the time, this nearly 600 page book was first published in 1927 to commemorate americas involvement into world war i. The bible tops the list of the most read books in the world. Researcher james chapman has compiled this look at the top 10 mostread books in the world. When jyoti turned 18 in 2007, he was the youngest fulltime novelist in the world. Most published works by one author guinness world records. William caxton, who introduced the printing press to england, printed the recuyell of the historyes of troye in 1473, which he had translated from the french original of raoul lefevre. Court cases have been fought, books have been burned, and fatwas have been issued. All records listed on our website are current and uptodate.
It is currently the longest novel published in modern chinese. World war i historic reference book now available on abmc. She had her diary published, which was her intent, and it has become the second most widelyread book in the world, after the bible. Most scholars agree that the greatest works of world literature were. It was first published in 1605 and a second edition was released in 1615. The most effective sat strategies ever published 2nd edition. Most scholars agree that the greatest works of world literature were written by homer, shakespeare, cervantes and goethe. Researchers have collated the figures for the number of editions, translations and copies sold of the world s most popular books these are the most loved tomes. The 20 most translated texts in history ingco international. What is the 2nd most published book in history answers. When john bunyan wrote the pilgrims progress in 1678, it quickly became one of the most influential books in the world, second only to the bible. Rowlings harry potter series at fifth place with 450m copies. The holy bible, quotations from chairman mao tsetung, harry potter, the lord of the rings, the alchemist, the da vinci code, the night saga, gone with the wind, think and grow rich, and the diary of anne frank.
First published in 1859, this novel by charles dickens examines the class struggles that lead to the french revolution, and the uncomfortable truth that sometimes the revolutionaries are worse than the establishment. The number 200 million is controversial however, considering that the book is regularly on the required reading lists of students in the u. The watchtower has a circulation larger than any other magazine in the world. As you can see from the graphic below created by designer jared fanning, the bible leads the countdown by a large margin. Quotations from the works of mao tsetung came in second with 820 million copies sold, and harry potter came in third with 400 million copies. Bbc culture polled critics around the world to decide the best reads for kids. Title author date number of languages with source language the bible. The hundred most influential books since the war the following item originally appeared in the times literary supplement 6 october 1995.
This book in malayalam is known as the longest written in an indian language. The book alcoholics anonymous is not in the top ten books of all time. These are the 12 most popular books of all time indy100. Jun 11, 2014 the bible is the most read and sold book in the history of the world, with an estimated sale amount of 100 million copies annually its not surprising that this text received the number 1 spot on this list. With over 300 translations from the original italian novel, pinocchio has charmed young listeners and disney fans around the world for generations. Sep 07, 2010 most scholars agree that the greatest works of world literature were written by homer, shakespeare, cervantes and goethe. The quotations from chairman mao tsetung, also known as the little red book, has produced a wide array of sales and distribution figures with estimates ranging from 800 million to over 6.
The prophecy of the stones is about three teenage girls who come together to fulfill an ancient prophecy, while in a parallel world another girl lies dying in a hospital. Quotations from the works of mao tsetung is the second most widely read book in the world. Quotations from the works of mao tsetung came in second with 820 million copies sold, and harry potter came in third with 400 million copies sold. Fifty shades of grey is britains bestselling book ever according to the. There seems to be more than one claim for second place. This childrens book has sold more than 50 million copies worldwide and is one of the 50 bestselling books ever published. New version of quotations from chairman mao, the worlds second most published book, to hit chinese shelves in november. Researcher james chapman has compiled this look at the top 10 most read books in the world. In terms of childrens books, pinocchio has reclaimed the top spot, making it the second most translated book in the world.
Although it is impossible to obtain exact figures, there is little doubt that the bible is the world s bestselling and most widely distributed book. Ron hubbard usa whose first work was published in february 1934 and the last in march 2006. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. It is true that the pilgrims progress has been the most published book in the world, second only to the bible, however, john bunyan wrote much more. The most popular novel on this list was spanish novel don quixote which came in at fourth place with 500m copies sold, followed by j. At the bottom of the list is the diary of anne frank, with 27 million copies sold. Maos little red book to get revamp world news the guardian. The american magazine is circulated by the meredith corporation. Fourth most published book in english language to go.
Find all the books, read about the author, and more. World war ii is also known as the second world war. Some are also distributed internationally while others have restricted local or national distribution. The 17 best books on world war i of 2020 thoughtco. This is a list of literary works including novels, plays, series, collections of poems or short stories, and essays and other forms of literary nonfiction sorted by the number of languages they have been translated into. He found that the bible far outsold any other book, with a whopping 3. A book that influenced charles darwin and is reputedly the fourth most published work in the english language is to be made available online the natural history and antiquities of selborne by. It is estimated to have sold about 500 million copies. What is the second best selling book of all time after the bible. Number of books read in the past 12 months in the u. Unsurprisingly, childrens books and fairy tales dominate the list of the most translated books throughout history.
In 1943, in the middle of the second world war, americas book publishers took an audacious gamble. How to land an agent for a selfpublished book jane friedman. This is a list of literary works including novels, plays, series, collections of poems or short. The two most widely published books in the world april 2009. The second edition of the bad bug book, published by the center for food safety and applied nutrition, of the food and drug administration fda, u. The newspapers with the highest circulation in the world are as follows. Discover the fascinating histories of 12 famous books that have been banned in countries. Newspapers are published in different languages at different locations in the world. With two billion copies of her books sold, christie ranks third in the world s most widely published books, right after shakespeares plays and the bible.
I have been amazed to discover how many people believe that john bunyan only wrote one book, that being the pilgrims progress. Originally titled a guide to the american battle fields in europe, the book served as a guide for americans traveling overseas to visit world war i battle sites, cemeteries and memorials. The alltime most popular books in the world revealed. The 21 bestselling books of all time howstuffworks. Quotations from chairman mao zedong, mao zedong, 900 million. Her best known mystery novel is and there was none that has sold over 100 million copies. Featuring more than 200 fascinating maps, 350 new photos, and stateof the art cartography and satellite imagery, this is an essential reference for families, travelers, students. National geographic visual atlas of the world, 2nd edition. Sep 27, 20 new version of quotations from chairman mao, the world s second most published book, to hit chinese shelves in november tania branigan in beijing fri 27 sep 20 10. What is the most published book in the world today. If you are published through amazon you can get daily sales data for most sales through their author central portal. Although it is impossible to obtain exact figures, there is little doubt that the bible is the worlds bestselling and most widely distributed book.
Writer james chapman created a list of the most read books in the world based on the number of copies each book. Coelho is enthusiastic about the internet and for a long time and supports the free download of his books. Both magazines are published by jehovahs witnesses and are distributed in 236 lands. What are the top 10 most printed books of all time. Flavia bujor wrote her first book when she was 12 and published it with harpercollins when she was 14. May 09, 2012 number of books read in the past 12 months in the u. Jun 27, 2007 the 3rd most published book in the world today is the book of mormonanother testament of jesus christ, which it reached its 100, 000, 000th copy published today february 29th in the year 2000. Lolita, published in 1955, is one of the most famous controversial books of all time. Writer james chapman created a list of the most read books in the world based on the number of copies each book sold over the last 50 years. Whether it was a scandalous story of sex or simply taking issue with a talking pig, many people have found reasons to ban some of the world s best and most famous books. The quran is also widely reported to be one of the most printed and distributed. Today she is the most translated author in the world. The top 10 most read books in the world list challenges.
But for hundreds of years, the story stirred up a lot of controversy because of its strong christian message. Rather handily, weve discovered this infographic of the top 10 most read books in the world over the past 50 years. Today, the worlds most translated book is the bible. Show less this new edition of marine mammals of the world describes and illustrates newly discovered and rarely photographed species, making it the most comprehensive and uptodate. For a full list of record titles, please use our record application search. The second and third books, fifty shades darker and fifty shades freed, are also selling fast, with uk. The book is considered one of the most influential pieces of spanish literature of the spanish golden age, and appears among the list of best fiction canonical novels ever published. A childrens fable certified by guinness world records as the smallest book ever reproduced in a colorful large print edition. A survey by the bible society concluded that around 2. He also published an article in the wall street journal when he was 15, the youngest person to do so. This page provides lists of bestselling individual books and book series to date and in any language. Seventy of the books listed were written by sixtyone authors some living, some deceased who are or were members of the academy.
What is the most widely read book in the world answers. Yes, it is extremely difficult to establish precise sales of contemporary books, and virtually impossible to establish exact sales of books published long ago. The success or failure of the their mission will determine the fate of their world and the sick girls life. Every church has hundreds upon hundreds, if not thousands of bibles. Each issue has a print run of more than 42 million copies.
With the use of imagination, we transform simple words printed on pages into completely new worlds, people, and journeys. Top 10 most read books in the world based on number of books printed and sold over the last 50 years. Thank you for helping us maintain cnet s great community. Reading books on ipads in the united states in 2012. The books are listed according to the highest sales estimate as reported in reliable, independent sources. Harper lees new novel go set a watchman, the followup to to kill a mockingbird, is set to become one of the fastestselling books of all time. Book readership in the united states from 2000 to 2012. The books that first make us fall in love with reading stay with us forever. Jun 15, 2015 strangely, noone so far has mentioned the unescos index translationum. It has been published in 9 volumes over a period of 40 years. Comics and textbooks are not included in this list. From spectacular space imagery to unesco world heritage sites, this stunning book showcases the diverse natural and cultural treasures of the world in glorious color. What is the 2nd most widely read book in the world.