A young cyclist leads the way in Shanghai during the early stages of the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, in April 2020. Image – iStockphoto: Robert Way
By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
Financial Advice for Kids
In our look at China’s bestsellers in March, we’re making a change to bring you Beijing OpenBook’s rankings on the Chinese market’s charting children’s books.Having looked at illustrated books per se for several months, we’ve found that illustrated work is so concentrated in books for young readers (as happens in many other markets, too) that there’s more to be gained from surveying the children’s book rankings, which will include both illustrated and unillustrated work for younger readers.
‘A Dog Named Money’
In children’s books, the amusingly titled A Dog Named Money by the German author and financial coach Bodo Schäfer (Ein Hund namens Money) is standing at No. 1. This is a fast mover in China’s market, having been published by CITIC Publishing House in December and made its way to the top spot within three months. Credit for its quick success, our associates at OpenBook say, goes to vigorous promotion and marketing of the financial management theme.
An earlier edition of the book was released in 2005 in China, and the book hasn’t been fully out of sight since, occasionally romping back onto the charts. The book features Kyra and her talking dog Money
‘Ein Hund namens Money’
But today’s Chinese parents, we’re told, are seeing personal-economics headlines and hearing financial advice these days, so they seem to be interested in instilling an awareness of the theme in their kids. And Schäfer’s book has been translated into 30 languages and has sold more than 5 million copies, according to the author’s company.
Also of note is Bronze and Flower, a Hans Christian Andersen Award winner (2016) by a beloved Chinese writer, Cao Wenxuan, a May 2005 release from Jiangsu Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House.
Translated from Mandarin, the book tells the story of two children, the boy Bronze and the girl Flower, brought together by separate tragedies and becoming fast friends in poverty-stricken family life.
‘Bronze and Flower’
Our colleagues in Beijing refer to how classics, bestsellers, award winners, and generally famous books seem to attract parents as they choose books for their children—a trend seen in other cultures, of course—and recommendations for kids’ reading can be especially potent from professional institutions and from celebrities.
All of which adds up to the “evergreen” nature of many entries on the children’s book lists in China, like their adult-reading fiction and nonfiction lists, not necessarily given to rapid change and new arrivals on the literature scene.
The market’s adult fiction and nonfiction lists reflect the readership’s past fixations rather bluntly in March, as it happens, with Liu Cixin’s Three-Body Problem seemingly inevitably returning to No. 1 in fiction, and Tara Westover’s Educated: A Memoir yet again ensconced at the top of the nonfiction lists.
Below, then, are OpenBook’s overall lists from March of bestsellers in fiction and nonfiction, followed by its lists of bestselling fiction and nonfiction in China by authors from outside the country.
At the end of our article, as always, you’ll find notes on how the lists are constructed.
OpenBook’s Fiction Bestsellers, March 2021
| February 2021 Ranking | March 2021 Ranking | ISBN | Release Date | Title (Translated) | Author | Chinese Publisher |
| 4 | 1 | 9787536692930 | 2008-01 | The Three-Body Problem | Liu Cixin | Chongqing Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 2 | 9787530221099 | 2021-02 | Wencheng | Yu hua | Beijing October Art & Literature Publishing House |
| 6 | 3 | 9787536693968 | 2008-05 | The Dark Forest | Liu Cixin | Chongqing Publishing House |
| 5 | 4 | 9787229030933 | 2010-11 | Death’s End | Liu Cixin | Chongqing Publishing House |
| 3 | 5 | 9787540487645 | 2018-06 | Moments We Shared | Zhang Jiajia | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| 1 | 6 | 9787020002207 | 1998-07 | Dream of the Red Chamber | Cao Xueqin | People’s Literature Publishing House |
| 2 | 7 | 9787500601593 | 2005-08 | Red Crag | Luo Guangbin, Yang Yiyan | China Youth Press |
| 10 | 8 | 9787555285298 | 2020-03 | Hidden Love | Zhu Yi | Qingdao Publishing House |
| 8 | 9 | 9787544291170 | 2017-08 | One Hundred Years of Solitude (50th Anniversary Edition) | Gabriel García Márquez | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 7 | 10 | 9787559452788 | 2020-12 | First Frost | Zhu Yi | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
| 18 | 11 | 9787530215593 | 2017-06 | To Live | Yu hua | Beijing October Art & Literature Publishing House |
| 19 | 12 | 9787506365437 | 2010-06 | To Live | Yu hua | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 16 | 13 | 9787544291163 | 2017-08 | Journey Under the Midnight Sun (2017 Edition) | Higashino Keigo | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 30 | 14 | 9787550032071 | 2019-02 | White Olive Tree | Jiu Yuexi | Baihuazhou Literature & Art Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 15 | 9787521210033 | 2020-09 | Sit for a While Tea House | Jia Pingwa | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 12 | 16 | 9787530216781 | 2017-06 | Ordinary Word (3 Volumes) | Lu Yao | Beijing October Art & Literature Publishing House |
| 24 | 17 | 9787208061644 | 2006-04 | The Kite Runner (2018 Edition) | Khaled Hosseini | Shanghai People’s Publishing House |
| 15 | 18 | 9787532178018 | 2020-11 | Preparing for the Stage | Li Dan | Shanghai Literature & Art Press |
| Not Ranked | 19 | 9787550025103 | 2017-12 | The Light in the Night | Priest | Baihuazhou Literature & Art Publishing House |
| 21 | 20 | 9787544285148 | 2016-10 | Malice | Higashino Keigo | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 17 | 21 | 9787020090006 | 2012-07 | Fortress Besieged | Qian Zhongshu | People’s Literature Publishing House |
| 27 | 22 | 9787532776771 | 2018-03 | Norwegian Wood (30th Anniversary Edition) | Haruki Murakami | Shanghai Translation Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 23 | 9787559622099 | 2018-08 | The Light in the Night (The End) | Priest | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 22 | 24 | 9787544766500 | 2017-01 | To Kill a Mockingbird | Harper Lee | Yilin Press |
| Not Ranked | 25 | 9787559621931 | 2018-06 | The Light in the Night (2) | Priest | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 9 | 26 | 9787539983295 | 2015-10 | Foundation | Isaac Asimov | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
| 11 | 27 | 9787500680239 | 2009-01 | Pioneering | Liu Qing | China Youth Press |
| Not Ranked | 28 | 9787020008728 | 1998-07 | Romance of the Three Kingdoms | Luo Guanzhong | People’s Literature Publishing House |
| 28 | 29 | 9787544267618 | 2014-06 | The Devotion of Suspect X | Higashino Keigo | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| Not Ranked | 30 | 9787020008735 | 1998-07 | Journey to the West | Wu Cheng’en | People’s Literature Publishing House |
OpenBook’s Nonfiction Bestsellers, March 2021
| February 2021 Ranking | March 2021 Ranking | ISBN | Release Date | Title (Translated) | Author | Chinese Publisher |
| 1 | 1 | 9787544276986 | 2019-10 | Educated: A Memoir | Tara Westover | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 2 | 2 | 9787539999883 | 2017-03 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon | Chen Lei | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
| 3 | 3 | 9787549632725 | 2020-09 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon (5) | Chen Lei | Wenhui Publishing House |
| 5 | 4 | 9787544382052 | 2018-05 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon (3) | Chen Lei | Hainan Publishing House |
| 6 | 5 | 9787544382045 | 2018-05 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon (2) | Chen Lei | Hainan Publishing House |
| 4 | 6 | 9787544387866 | 2019-09 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon (4) | Chen Lei | Hainan Publishing House |
| 12 | 7 | 9787550268517 | 2016-07 | Positive Discipline | Jane Nelsen | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 8 | 8 | 9787559418111 | 2018-04 | 30 Minutes of World History in Cartoon | Chen Lei | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
| 9 | 9 | 9787508095226 | 2018-09 | Nonviolent Communication | Marshall B. Rosenberg | Huaxia Publishing House |
| 11 | 10 | 9787559640246 | 2020-04 | Gag Reel (Signature Edition) | Li Dan | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 16 | 11 | 9787559639134 | 2020-06 | The Rise of China | Jin Yinan | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 10 | 12 | 9787540489304 | 2019-01 | Danshari | Yamashita Eiko | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| Not Ranked | 13 | 9787521210255 | 2020-08 | The Tough Brilliance | Jin Yinan | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 17 | 14 | 9787540487850 | 2018-08 | Guo Degang on Chinese Cultural History | Guo degang | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| 14 | 15 | 9787508660752 | 2017-02 | Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind | Yuval Noah Harari | CITIC Publishing House Co.,Ltd |
| 13 | 16 | 9787508689586 | 2018-07 | Economics Lecture Notes | Xue Zhaofeng | CITIC Publishing House Co.,Ltd |
| 7 | 17 | 9787544771627 | 2018-03 | Fu Lei’s Letters for Home (2018 Edition)(Hardcover) | Fu Lei, Fu Min | Yilin Press |
| 21 | 18 | 9787108063106 | 2018-06 | We Three (Third Edition) | Yang Jiang | SDX Joint Publishing Company |
| 19 | 19 | 9787544389372 | 2019-11 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon: Traditional Chinese Festivals | Chen Lei | Hainan Publishing House |
| 20 | 20 | 9787201088945 | 2014-12 | No More Than Skins | Cai Chongda | Tianjin People’s Publishing House |
| 18 | 21 | 9787540484880 | 2018-01 | The Gay Genius: The Life and Times of Su Tungpo (Commemorative Edition) | Lin Yutang | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| 24 | 22 | 9787559436184 | 2019-05 | 30 Minutes of Tang Poetry in Cartoon | Chen Lei | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
| 23 | 23 | 9787559620125 | 2018-05 | Genius on the Left, Lunatic on the Right (Full Version)(New Edition) | Gao Ming | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| Not Ranked | 24 | 9787020116133 | 2016-06 | Red Star Over China | Edgar Snow | People’s Literature Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 25 | 9787503561634 | 2017-08 | Xi Jinping’s Seven Years as an Educated Youth | Party School of the Central Committee of C.P.C | Central Party School Press |
| 30 | 26 | 9787521708554 | 2019-09 | Style | Wu Jun | CITIC Publishing House Co.,Ltd |
| 29 | 27 | 9787530214787 | 2017-04 | The Stories of the Sahara | Echo | Beijing October Art & Literature Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 28 | 9787540493653 | 2020-01 | When They were Young: Poets of Tang and Song Dynasty | Shao Nian Nu Ma | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| 22 | 29 | 9787544771610 | 2018-03 | Fu Lei’s Letters for Home (2018 Edition)(Paperback) | Fu Lei, Fu Min | Yilin Press |
| Not Ranked | 30 | 9787536093171 | 2020-12 | Abandon the Cat: When Talking about My Father | Haruki Murakami | Flower City Press |
OpenBook’s Children’s Bestsellers, March 2021
| February 2021 Ranking | March 2021 Ranking | ISBN | Release Date | Title (Translated) | Author | Chinese Publisher |
| 5 | 1 | 9787521726473 | 2020-12 | A Dog Named Money | Bodo Schäfer | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
| 1 | 2 | 9787534633362 | 2005-05 | Bronze and Sunflower | Cao Wenxuan | Jiangsu Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 2 | 3 | 9787559706522 | 2018-05 | The Foolish and the Unhappy (With Chinese Pinyin) | Ren Rongrong | Zhejiang Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 6 | 4 | 9787533299224 | 2018-10 | Fantastic Mr. Fox | Roald Dahl, Quentin Blake | Tomorrow Publishing House |
| 22 | 5 | 9787536587694 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: I am a Pupil | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 25 | 6 | 9787536587724 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: Look at This Family | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 9 | 7 | 9787536574366 | 2016-01 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Stratego | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 27 | 8 | 9787536587717 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: A Dog Called Rat | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 10 | 9 | 9787536574397 | 2016-01 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Clever Little Prodigy | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 14 | 10 | 9787536593749 | 2020-05 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Game of the Wise | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 28 | 11 | 9787536587700 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: My Good Friend Tie Tou | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 17 | 12 | 9787536593756 | 2020-05 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Password Discovery | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 13 | 13 | 9787536574380 | 2016-01 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Who’s the Smart Guy? | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 15 | 14 | 9787536574373 | 2016-01 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: The Great Adventure of the Castle | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 18 | 15 | 9787536593459 | 2020-05 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: ‘Have a Meal’ Restaurant | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 19 | 16 | 9787536593442 | 2020-05 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: The Magic Lamp | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 3 | 17 | 9787534618727 | 1998-07 | The Straw Hut | Cao Wenxuan | Jiangsu Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 7 | 18 | 9787558900648 | 2017-07 | Winter of Three Hairs (With Chinese Pinyin) | Zhang Leping | Juvenile & Children’s Publishing House |
| 4 | 19 | 9787544288590 | 2018-06 | Totto-Chan: The Little Girl at the Window (2018 Edition) | Kuroyanagi Tetsuko | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| Not Ranked | 20 | 9787536587762 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: If I Have a Time Machine | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 21 | 9787536587731 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: Trouble of the New Deskmate | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 22 | 9787536587755 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: Secrets of Nature | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 23 | 9787536587748 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: A Lot of Fun | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 24 | 9787536588103 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: The Future Me | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 25 | 9787536588110 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: Undercover Deskmate | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 8 | 26 | 9787534256301 | 2009-09 | Dreaming of Being a Wolf King (2018 Edition) | Shen Shixi | Zhejiang Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 20 | 27 | 9787543464582 | 2007-05 | My Dad | Anthony Browne | Hebei Education Press |
| Not Ranked | 28 | 9787536587793 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: Comedy King Comes | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 23 | 29 | 9787543464575 | 2007-06 | My Mum | Anthony Browne | Hebei Education Press |
| 26 | 30 | 9787201077642 | 2013-01 | The Little Prince | Antoine de Saint-Exupéry | Tianjin People’s Publishing House |
Foreign Author Fiction Bestsellers, March 2021
| February 2021 Ranking | March 2021 Ranking | ISBN | Release Date | Title (Translated) | Author | Author nationality | Chinese Publisher |
| 1 | 1 | 9787544291170 | 2017-08 | One Hundred Years of Solitude (50th Anniversary Edition) | Gabriel García Márquez | Colombia | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 4 | 2 | 9787544291163 | 2017-08 | Journey Under the Midnight Sun (2017 Edition) | Higashino Keigo | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 8 | 3 | 9787208061644 | 2018-02 | The Kite Runner (2018 Edition) | Khaled Hosseini | United States of America | Shanghai People’s Publishing House |
| 6 | 4 | 9787544285148 | 2016-10 | Malice | Higashino Keigo | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 9 | 5 | 9787532776771 | 2018-03 | Norwegian Wood (30th Anniversary Edition) | Haruki Murakami | Japan | Shanghai Translation Publishing House |
| 7 | 6 | 9787544766500 | 2017-01 | To Kill a Mockingbird | Harper Lee | United States of America | Yilin Press |
| 2 | 7 | 9787539983295 | 2015-10 | Foundation | Isaac Asimov | United States of America | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
| 10 | 8 | 9787544267618 | 2014-06 | The Devotion of Suspect X | Higashino Keigo | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 3 | 9 | 9787506394864 | 2017-09 | Sophie’s World (New Edition) | Jostein Gaarder | Norway | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 12 | 10 | 9787544291224 | 2017-08 | After School (2017 Edition) | Higashino Keigo | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 13 | 11 | 9787544298995 | 2020-09 | Miracles of the Namiya General Store (2020 Edition) | Higashino Keigo | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 17 | 12 | 9787532175512 | 2020-05 | 13 Steps | Kazuaki Takano | Japan | Shanghai Literature & Art Press |
| 14 | 13 | 9787544280662 | 2020-03 | Silent Parade | Higashino Keigo | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 15 | 14 | 9787544281102 | 2016-01 | Newcomer | Higashino Keigo | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 16 | 15 | 9787544297059 | 2020-03 | Love in the Time of Cholera (3 Million Sold Anniversary Edition) | Gabriel García Márquez | Colombia | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 20 | 16 | 9787201116693 | 2017-05 | My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry | Fredrik Backman | Sweden | Tianjin People’s Publishing House |
| 19 | 17 | 9787555910749 | 2020-12 | The Silent Patient | Alex Michaelides | Britain | Henan Literature & Art Press |
| 11 | 18 | 9787544775717 | 2019-06 | 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (New Edition) | Jules Verne | France | Yilin Press |
| 5 | 19 | 9787544774635 | 2019-01 | How the Steel Was Tempered (New Edition) | Nikolai Alexeevich Ostrovsky | Russia | Yilin Press |
| Not Ranked | 20 | 9787544270878 | 2014-04 | Miracles of the Namiya General Store | Higashino Keigo | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
Foreign Author Nonfiction Bestsellers, March 2021
| February 2021 Ranking | March 2021 Ranking | ISBN | Release Date | Title (Translated) | Author | Author nationality | Chinese Publisher |
| 2 | 1 | 9787201161693 | 2020-08 | Counselling for Toads: A Psychological Adventure | Robert de Board | Britain | Tianjin People’s Publishing House |
| 1 | 2 | 9787544276986 | 2019-10 | Educated: A Memoir | Tara Westover | United States of America | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| Not Ranked | 3 | 9787111495482 | 2020-03 | The Courage to Be Disliked | Kishimi Ichiro | Japan | China Machine Press |
| 5 | 4 | 9787550268517 | 2016-07 | Positive Discipline | Jane Nelsen | United States of America | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 4 | 5 | 9787508095226 | 2018-09 | Nonviolent Communication | Marshall B. Rosenberg | United States of America | Huaxia Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 6 | 9787111635574 | 2019-10 | The Working Methods of Kazuo Inamori | Kazuo Inamori | Japan | China Machine Press |
| 7 | 7 | 9787540471194 | 2019-02 | Relationship: Bridge to the Soul | Christoper Moon | Canada | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| Not Ranked | 8 | 9787520711531 | 2019-11 | A Compass to Fulfillment | Kazuo Inamori | Japan | Orient Press |
| 6 | 9 | 9787540489304 | 2019-01 | Danshari | Yamashita Eiko | Japan | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| Not Ranked | 10 | 9787115536198 | 2020-05 | Heart: Kazuo Inamori’s Philosophy of Life | Kazuo Inamori | Japan | Posts & Telecommunications Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 11 | 9787220114045 | 2019-07 | Rich Dad Poor Dad | Robert T.Kiyosaki | United States of America | Sichuan People’s Publishing House |
| 3 | 12 | 9787508687216 | 2018-08 | Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty | Abhijit V.Banerjee, Esther Duflo | United States of America | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
| Not Ranked | 13 | 9787111551287 | 2016-10 | Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise | Anders Ericsson, Robert Pool | United States of America | China Machine Press |
| 8 | 14 | 9787508660752 | 2017-02 | Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind | Yuval Noah Harari | Israel | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
| 10 | 15 | 9787547734315 | 2019-09 | Life is Worth Living | Nakamura Tsuneko | Japan | Beijing daily publishing house |
| 9 | 16 | 9787508684031 | 2017-12 | Principles | Ray Dalio | United States of America | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
| 17 | 17 | 9787020116133 | 2017-06 | Red Star Over China | Edgar Snow | United States of America | People’s Literature Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 18 | 9787108009821 | 2014-03 | 1587, a Year of No Significance | Ray Huang | United States of America | SDX Joint Publishing Company |
| 11 | 19 | 9787535732309 | 2001-11 | A Brief History of Time | Stephen W.Hawking | Britain | Hunan Science & Technology Press |
| Not Ranked | 20 | 9787521713305 | 2020-03 | What It Takes: Lessons in the Pursuit of Excellence | Stephen A. Schwarzman | United States of America | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
Notes on the Charts
OpenBook
is a privately owned industry-data research firm based in Beijing. It functions somewhat as Nielsen and NDP do from the West, and Nielsen Book Research International has worked with OpenBook in Asian operations. With authoritative data and information resources, OpenBook is able to deliver consulting service to partners who would like to explore the Chinese book market and identify suitable partners.
Jiang Boyan LLC advises authors and right’s holders on global intellectual property and investment opportunities.As of January 1, 2020, OpenBook monitored more than 10,000 online and offline bookstores.
The online channel includes digital retailers such as large self-operated online stores, platform stores, and small- and medium-sized stores. The offline channels include 4,495 bookstores. Coverage includes most of the state-owned and influential privately owned bookstores in 30 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions. Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Tibet are not included in OpenBook’s system.
In 2019, OpenBook tracked around 71.72 billion RMB in sales (US$10.1 billion).
Retail outlets include:
- Traditional bookstores
- Supermarkets
- Campus bookstores
- “Professional” stores, said to be small stores with a specific industrial or trade focus
- Airport stores
In addition, OpenBook is drawing data from online bookstores of three main types:
- The “Tmall” stores of Alibaba (Tmall is described as a marketplace of companies that create storefronts online to sell products including books)
- The “JingDong” Stores of JD.com (similar to Tmall as a marketplace of both individual companies and bookstores operated by JD.com)
- Ten independent online bookselling retailers
China has 500 or more publishers in operation today. Most of them, Jiang Boyan CEO James Bryant clarifies, are government-owned. Private publishers are required to generate ISBNs for their titles from a publishing company that is government-owned—which, in other words, creates a system in which all ISBNs are in one way or another registered through government channels. The government approves each book published in China.
More China bestseller reports from Publishing Perspectives are here. And more from us on the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on international book publishing is here.