King enters 2012 as #1
Posted: January 1, 2012, 03:00
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Not only has 11/22/63 proven a critical success, it also seems to be King's most popular novel since 1998's Bag of Bones.
Whether it's due to variance in King's popularity or the shifting attitudes of the book-buying public in general, in recent years, King's hardcovers have been hitting the New York Times Bestseller List high and then falling down (and off) rapidly. Not so with 11/22/63. It debuted at #1 - never an oddity for King - then dropped to #2 for three successive weeks as new books by James Patterson, Janet Evanovich, and Michael Connelly each smashed in at #1 ... and fell. In its fifth week, King's time travel novel shot back up to #1, making the first King hardcover to drop from the top spot and then reclaim it since 1990's The Stand. For the last three weeks, it has held fast to #1, making it King's longest stay at #1 since Dolores Claiborne's seven-week run in 1992/93.
The critics have been very kind to this book, and with good reason, but it's really gratifying that in his fifth decade of publishing books, King is just as popular as ever, if not more so. The reading audience is changing, but they still love Stephen King. That's pretty amazing.
Thanks to Kevin Quigley
