Book Publishing Sales Stayed Hot in August

The publishing industry’s hot summer sales streak continued in August. Sales at the 1,277 companies that report results to the Association of American Publishers’ StatShot program came in at $1.7 billion, notching an 8.5% increase in revenue compared to August 2023.

Year-to-date revenues were up 7.8%, to $9.3 billion, for the first eight months of the year. The August increase follows an 18.1% jump in July 2024 over the previous year.

In the adult trade segment, fiction sales were up 14.7%, and nonfiction sales rose 8.5%. Within the trade segment, sales from religious presses continue to lead the way, with revenues up a hefty 47.4% in August, coming in at $85.3 million. Overall, religious press revenues have posted a 21.2% gain for the first eight months of the year, to $563.7 million.

Sales of children’s/YA fiction were up 6.6% for the month over 2023, and children’s nonfiction sales increased by 12.2%. University presses also posted a strong month, with an 18.2% increase in net sales compared to August 2023.

In terms of format, sales of digital audio continued to show impressive growth, up 38.8%, to $93.9 million in revenue, for the month compared to last year. E-book sales were also up 6.1%, netting $90.4 million. In print, hardback sales were up 8.0%, coming in at $2.0 billion; paperbacks were up 5.9%, posting $2.1 billion in revenue; and the mass market format continues to slide, down 18.1% to $81.9 million.