BESTSELLERS
The 100 bestselling books of the past 50 years
To celebrate 50 years of the Sunday Times bestseller list, we have calculated the nation’s most popular books over the past five decades — how many have you read?
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ILLUSTRATION BY RUSSEL HERNEMAN
Victoria Segal
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Sarah Ditum
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Laura Hackett
Friday August 16 2024, 6.00am, The Sunday Times
Just over 50 years ago, on April 14, 1974, a new feature appeared in The Sunday Times — the bestseller list. In it, the paper documented the most popular fiction, non-fiction and paperbacks, which in that first week included an autobiography by the Duchess of Bedford and
Jaws by Peter Benchley.
The list was the first of its kind in the UK, and not uncontroversial (some critics declared it “anti-literary” or even “unEnglish”) but no one could have guessed just how important it would go on to be. Today, becoming a Sunday Times bestseller is the ultimate benchmark of commercial success for authors and publishers alike.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of
the bestseller list, we have calculated the top 100 bestselling books of the past five decades, according to how many weeks a title has spent in the Top Ten. The results are a fascinating insight into modern Britain: the topics we care about, the voices we enjoy most and, crucially, how we want to appear to others.
Which is your favourite book on the list? And which book are you surprised hasn’t made the cut?
Full article, no paywall below...
https://archive.ph/2BQAW