A March 8 shot at Nanjing’s Jiangsu Garden Expo Park, a 1.3-square-mile development built on reclaimed quarries and industrial sites. Image – Getty iStockphoto
By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
When School Reading Lists Are Delayed
Catching up now with our March China Bestsellers’ rankings, we’re looking at yet another springtime month when Chinese classics once again ruled the charts—in all Top 20 positions, in fact, on Beijing OpenBook’s master fiction list. In fact, our colleagues at OpenBook point out that only one title, Thiaoouba Prophecy by Michel Desmarquet, was new to the Top 30.
‘Thiaoouba Prophecy’
In March, six books moved back into the Top 30 ranking, another testament to the abiding popularity of what the vast Chinese readership thinks of as its contemporary classics:
- Fortress Besieged by Qian Zhongshu, No. 19
- 13 Steps by Kazuaki, No. 20
- First Frost (The End) by Zhu Yi, No.26
- Hidden Love by Zhu Yi, No. 27
- Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong, No. 29
- First Frost by Zhu Yi, No. 30
The coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic has played a role in the fact that this year’s March list isn’t as heavily influenced as it usually is by educational curriculum reading lists.
‘First Frost’
Our colleagues at OpenBook point to delayed openings of primary and secondary schools in many parts of China this year, as tough spread-mitigation measures were deployed to try to contain outbreaks. “The return to school in some areas was delayed until April,” Wendy Pan tells us, “so the market shows a lack of recommended reading for students in March.”
Perhaps the key point, however, for those looking at the market’s performance is that in a March that was unusually free of the usual seasonal classroom drivers, the readership turned not to new material but to the tried-and-true. Tradition counts heavily in the slow evolution of bestseller lists in China.
In the case of the 1993 Thiaoouba Prophecy, which is fantasy tinged with spirituality, the book entered the Chinese market in 2018 and got into the Top 30 in July 2020 for a five-month stay on the lists. Its re-entry now, the OpenBook team says, has to do with a lot of new online video attention. It became a bit of a meme this spring, in other words, and found some new footing at No. 24 in the overall list and No. 7 in the foreign authors fiction listing.
‘Blue Flame,’ Volume 1
In nonfiction, the Beijing Winter Olympics have sent Blue Flame and Blue Flame 2 skating onto the charts at Nos. 18 and 19, being the autobiographical titles from 27-year-old Japanese skating star Yuzuru Hanyu. The books arrived on the Chinese market in 2020 but only now have slid into place, the “Prince of Skating,” as some call him. And as it turned out, he had some ups and downs in the Beijing games, including a couple of falls and an ankle injury. On March 1, as his books arrived on the charts, he withdrew from the 2022 world championships, citing ongoing trouble with that ankle. Perhaps there’s time now to work on Volume 3.
Below, then, are OpenBook’s overall lists from March of bestsellers in fiction, nonfiction, and children’s books, 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 2022
| February 2022 Ranking | March 2022 Ranking | ISBN | Release Date | Title (Translated) | Author | Chinese Publisher |
| 1 | 1 | 9787506331746 | 2005-05 | Distant Savior | Dou Dou | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 6 | 2 | 9787515350264 | 2018-01 | In the World (3 Volumes) | Liang Xiaosheng | China Youth Press |
| 2 | 3 | 9787536692930 | 2008-01 | The Three-Body Problem | Liu Cixin | Chongqing Publishing House |
| 3 | 4 | 9787536693968 | 2008-05 | The Dark Forest | Liu Cixin | Chongqing Publishing House |
| 4 | 5 | 9787229030933 | 2010-11 | Death’s End | Liu Cixin | Chongqing Publishing House |
| 5 | 6 | 9787500601593 | 2005-08 | Red Crag | Luo Guangbin, Yang Yiyan | China Youth Press |
| 7 | 7 | 9787506368698 | 2013-06 | The World Under the Sky | Dou Dou | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 12 | 8 | 9787020002207 | 1998-07 | Dream of the Red Chamber | Cao Xueqin | People’s Literature Publishing House |
| 9 | 9 | 9787544291170 | 2017-08 | One Hundred Years of Solitude (50th Anniversary Edition) | Gabriel García Márquez | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 14 | 10 | 9787544766500 | 2017-01 | To Kill a Mockingbird | Harper Lee | Yilin Press |
| 15 | 11 | 9787540487645 | 2018-06 | Moments We Shared | Zhang Jiajia | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| 11 | 12 | 9787506394840 | 2017-04 | The Heaven Trap | Jiao Jian | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 10 | 13 | 9787533966102 | 2021-12 | Life and Death are Wearing Me Out | Mo Yan | Zhejiang Literature & Art Press |
| 16 | 14 | 9787506394314 | 2017-04 | White Deer Plain | Chen Zhongshi | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 24 | 15 | 9787530219218 | 2019-02 | A Wavy Life | Mai Jia | Beijing October Art & Literature Publishing House |
| 20 | 16 | 9787544291163 | 2017-08 | Journey Under the Midnight Sun (2017 Edition) | Keigo Higashino | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 21 | 17 | 9787530221532 | 2021-10 | To Live (2021 Edition) | Yu hua | Beijing October Art & Literature Publishing House |
| 19 | 18 | 9787530221396 | 2021-06 | Ordinary Word (3 Volumes) (2021 Edition) | Lu Yao | Beijing October Art & Literature Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 19 | 9787020090006 | 2012-07 | Fortress Besieged | Qian Zhongshu | People’s Literature Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 20 | 9787532175512 | 2020-05 | 13 Steps | Kazuaki Takano | Shanghai Literature & Art Press |
| 8 | 21 | 9787559455758 | 2021-12 | Heliotrope & Zjz | Ying Cheng | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
| 26 | 22 | 9787530221099 | 2021-02 | Wencheng | Yu hua | Beijing October Art & Literature Publishing House |
| 23 | 23 | 9787500680239 | 2009-01 | Pioneering | Liu Qing | China Youth Press |
| Not Ranked | 24 | 9787521200836 | 2018-08 | Thiaoouba Prophecy | Michel Desmarquet | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 22 | 25 | 9787555291183 | 2020-11 | The Black Lotus | Bai Yu Zhai Diao Gong | Qingdao Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 26 | 9787559455000 | 2021-06 | First Frost (The End) | Zhu Yi | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
| Not Ranked | 27 | 9787555285298 | 2020-03 | Hidden Love | Zhu Yi | Qingdao Publishing House |
| 25 | 28 | 9787572602825 | 2021-08 | Always Have, Always Will | Zhang Jiajia | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| Not Ranked | 29 | 9787020008728 | 1998-07 | Romance of the Three Kingdoms | Luo Guanzhong | People’s Literature Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 30 | 9787559452788 | 2020-12 | First Frost | Zhu Yi | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
OpenBook’s Nonfiction Bestsellers, March 2022
| February 2022 Ranking | March 2022 Ranking | ISBN | Release Date | Title (Translated) | Author | Chinese Publisher |
| 2 | 1 | 9787561346259 | 2009-05 | Yi Ching is Really to Understand | Zeng Shiqiang | Shaanxi Normal University Press |
| 3 | 2 | 9787544334792 | 2011-01 | Close to The Buddha | Khenpo Sherab Zangpo Rinpoche | Hainan Publishing House |
| 1 | 3 | 9787201161693 | 2020-08 | Counselling for Toads: A Psychological Adventure | Robert de Board | Tianjin People’s Publishing House |
| 4 | 4 | 9787111495482 | 2015-04 | The Courage to Be Disliked | Ichiro Kishimi | China Machine Press |
| 5 | 5 | 9787222204331 | 2021-11 | Details of Law | Luo Xiang | Yunnan People’s Publishing House |
| 12 | 6 | 9787521603774 | 2019-08 | The Faith as Premise of Freedom | Luo Xiang | China Legal Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 7 | 9787521733679 | 2021-09 | The Most Tender Upbringing: Be a Gentle but Steadfast Parent | Oh Eun-young | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
| 7 | 8 | 9787111691020 | 2021-09 | The Underlying Logic: How to See the Essence of Things | Liu Run | China Machine Press |
| 8 | 9 | 9787544276986 | 2019-10 | Educated: A Memoir | Tara Westover | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 10 | 10 | 9787557025847 | 2021-11 | If History were a Group of Cats: Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms | Fei Zhi | Guangdong Tourism Publishing House |
| 9 | 11 | 9787208171336 | 2021-08 | In the Affair: Chinese Government and Economic Development | Lan Xiaohuan | Shanghai People’s Publishing House |
| 13 | 12 | 9787550268517 | 2016-07 | Positive Discipline | Jane Nelsen | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| Not Ranked | 13 | 9787544394796 | 2022-03 | Chinese Art History for Dummies | Yi Gongzi | Hainan Publishing House |
| 11 | 14 | 9787550043657 | 2021-11 | Speechless Time Answers Everything | Ji Xianlin | Baihuazhou Literature & Art Publishing House |
| 27 | 15 | 9787559313652 | 2017-09 | If History were a Group of Cats: Xia, Shang and Western Zhou Dynasty | Fei Zhi | Heilongjiang Fine Arts Press |
| Not Ranked | 16 | 9787010009223 | 1998-07 | Mao’s Selected Works (vol.1) | Mao Zhedong | People’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 17 | 9787511568687 | 2021-01 | At the Turn of Xiajiang River: The Story of Chen Xingjia | Chen Xingjia | People Daily Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 18 | 9787559643346 | 2020-09 | Blue Flame | Yuzuru Hanyu | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| Not Ranked | 19 | 9787559646767 | 2020-12 | Blue Flame (2) | Yuzuru Hanyu | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 16 | 20 | 9787539999883 | 2017-03 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon | Chen Lei | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
| 20 | 21 | 9787557024413 | 2021-05 | If History were a Group of Cats: Prosperity of the Tang Dynasty | Fei Zhi | Guangdong Tourism Publishing House |
| 17 | 22 | 9787549632725 | 2020-09 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon (5) | Chen Lei | Wenhui Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 23 | 9787521736816 | 2022-01 | Guns, Germs, and Steel | Jared Diamond | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
| 29 | 24 | 9787559330260 | 2018-06 | If History were a Group of Cats: The Spring-autumn and Warring State Period | Fei Zhi | Heilongjiang Fine Arts Press |
| 21 | 25 | 9787544387866 | 2019-09 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon (4) | Chen Lei | Hainan Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 26 | 9787010009230 | 1998-07 | Mao’s Selected Works (vol.2) | Mao Zhedong | People’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 27 | 9787010009254 | 1998-07 | Mao’s Selected Works (vol.4) | Mao Zhedong | People’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 28 | 9787010009247 | 1998-07 | Mao’s Selected Works (vol.3) | Mao Zhedong | People’s Publishing House |
| 22 | 29 | 9787544382045 | 2018-05 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon (2) | Chen Lei | Hainan Publishing House |
| 23 | 30 | 9787544382052 | 2018-05 | 30 Minutes of Chinese History in Cartoon (3) | Chen Lei | Hainan Publishing House |
OpenBook’s Children’s Bestsellers, March 2022
| February 2022 Ranking | March 2022 Ranking | ISBN | Release Date | Title (Translated) | Author | Chinese Publisher |
| Not Ranked | 1 | 9787570711888 | 2021-12 | Ultraman Series Photo Book for 55th Anniversary | Tsuburaya Productions | Anhui Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 1 | 2 | 9787521726473 | 2020-12 | A Dog Named Money | Bodo Schafer | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
| Not Ranked | 3 | 9787569903423 | 2015-07 | Harvard at 4:30 a.m: Best Gift for Pupils from Harvard | Wei Xiuying, Wei Fenglian | Beijing Times Chinese Press |
| 24 | 4 | 9787536574397 | 2016-01 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Clever Little Prodigy | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 25 | 5 | 9787536574366 | 2016-01 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Stratego | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 29 | 6 | 9787536574380 | 2016-01 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Who’s the Smart Guy? | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 30 | 7 | 9787536574373 | 2016-01 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: The Great Adventure of the Castle | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 8 | 9787536587694 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: I am a Pupil | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 9 | 9787536587724 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: Look at This Family | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 10 | 9787536587717 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: A Dog Called Rat | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 11 | 9787536587700 | 2018-04 | Mi Xiaoquan School Experience: My Good Friend Tie Tou | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 12 | 9787536593749 | 2020-05 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Game of the Wise | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 17 | 13 | 9787550286122 | 2016-11 | Butt Detective: Disappeared Popular Dessert | troll | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 16 | 14 | 9787550286238 | 2016-11 | Butt Detective: Look for the Rainbow Diamond | troll | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 18 | 15 | 9787550286085 | 2016-11 | Butt Detective: The Big Crisis of Small Director | troll | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 19 | 16 | 9787550286214 | 2016-11 | Butt Detective: The Missing Lunch Box | troll | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| Not Ranked | 17 | 9787536593756 | 2020-05 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: Password Discovery | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 20 | 18 | 9787559608390 | 2018-01 | Butt Detective: The Criminal Appears | troll | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 15 | 19 | 9787559621337 | 2019-04 | Butt Detective: Detective and the Fraud | troll | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 8 | 20 | 9787571318536 | 2021-07 | Finger Plays of Left and Right Brain Development for Children Aged 0-6 | Li Caixia | Jiangsu Science & Technology Press |
| Not Ranked | 21 | 9787115545824 | 2020-10 | Lamb Going Up the Mountain: Chinese Graded Reader (Lv.1)(10 volumes) | Sun Pei | Posts & Telecommunications Publishing House |
| 4 | 22 | 9787530141847 | 2014-12 | Who Stole My Time | Beijing Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House | |
| Not Ranked | 23 | 9787536593459 | 2020-05 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: ‘Have a Meal’ Restaurant | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 24 | 9787536593442 | 2020-05 | Mi Xiaoquan’s Brain-teaser: The Magic Lamp | Bei Mao | Sichuan Juvenile and Children’s Publishing House |
| 7 | 25 | 9787533299224 | 2018-10 | Fantastic Mr. Fox | Roald Dahl, Quentin Blake | Tomorrow Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 26 | 9787539135168 | 2006-10 | Les P’tites Poules: I Want to See the Sea | Christian Jolibois, Christian Heinrich | 21st Century Press Group |
| 21 | 27 | 9787558900648 | 2017-07 | Winter of Three Hairs (With Chinese Pinyin) | Zhang Leping | Juvenile & Children’s Publishing House |
| 9 | 28 | 9787020144532 | 2018-10 | Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone | JK Rowling | People’s Literature Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 29 | 9787539168999 | 2011-10 | Les P’tites Poules: I am Not a Coward | Christian Jolibois, Christian Heinrich | 21st Century Press Group |
| Not Ranked | 30 | 9787539135182 | 2006-10 | Les P’tites Poules: I Want to Have a Star | Christian Jolibois, Christian Heinrich | 21st Century Press Group |
Foreign Author Fiction Bestsellers, March 2022
| February 2022 Ranking | March 2022 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. |
| 2 | 2 | 9787544766500 | 2017-01 | To Kill a Mockingbird | Harper Lee | United States of America | Yilin Press |
| 4 | 3 | 9787544291163 | 2017-08 | Journey Under the Midnight Sun (2017 Edition) | Keigo Higashino | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 5 | 4 | 9787532175512 | 2020-05 | 13 Steps | Kazuaki Takano | Japan | Shanghai Literature & Art Press |
| 7 | 5 | 9787521200836 | 2018-08 | Thiaoouba Prophecy | Michel Desmarquet | Australia | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 3 | 6 | 9787506394864 | 2017-09 | Sophie’s World (New Edition) | Jostein Gaarder | Norway | The Writer’s Publishing House |
| 10 | 7 | 9787544298995 | 2020-09 | Miracles of the Namiya General Store (2020 Edition) | Keigo Higashino | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| Not Ranked | 8 | 9787208061644 | 2021-03 | The Kite Runner | Khaled Hosseini | United States of America | Shanghai People’s Publishing House |
| 12 | 9 | 9787544267618 | 2014-06 | The Devotion of Suspect X | Keigo Higashino | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 14 | 10 | 9787544297059 | 2020-03 | Love in the Time of Cholera (3 Million Sold Anniversary Edition) | Gabriel García Márquez | Colombia | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 13 | 11 | 9787536094857 | 2021-11 | First Person Singular | Haruki Murakami | Japan | Flower City Press |
| Not Ranked | 12 | 9787201112695 | 2017-03 | Siddhartha | Hermann Hesse | Germany | Tianjin People’s Publishing House |
| 17 | 13 | 9787559641182 | 2020-07 | Scream | Aki Hamanaka | Japan | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 18 | 14 | 9787544291224 | 2017-08 | After School (2017 Edition) | Keigo Higashino | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| Not Ranked | 15 | 9787559614711 | 2018-01 | Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit | Jeanette Winterson | Britain | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 6 | 16 | 9787540485337 | 2018-03 | Tsubaki Stationery Store | Ito Ogawa | Japan | Hunan Literature & Art Press |
| Not Ranked | 17 | 9787541159466 | 2021-07 | Can Not | Shusuke Michio | Japan | Sichuan Literature & Art Press |
| 20 | 18 | 9787533955168 | 2019-02 | Crime and Punishment | Fyodor Dostoevsky | Russia | Zhejiang Literature & Art Press |
| Not Ranked | 19 | 9787544296274 | 2019-09 | Summer, Fireworks, and My Corpse | Otsuichi | Japan | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 8 | 20 | 9787539983295 | 2015-10 | Foundation | Isaac Asimov | United States of America | Jiangsu Literature & Art Press |
Foreign Author Nonfiction Bestsellers, March 2022
| January 2022 Ranking | March 2022 Ranking | ISBN | Release Date | Title (Translated) | Author | Author nationality | Chinese Publisher |
| 1 | 1 | 9787201161693 | 2020-08 | Counselling for Toads: A Psychological Adventure | Robert de Board | Britain | Tianjin People’s Publishing House |
| 2 | 2 | 9787111495482 | 2020-03 | The Courage to Be Disliked | Ichiro Kishimi | Japan | China Machine Press |
| 14 | 3 | 9787521733679 | 2021-09 | The Most Tender Upbringing: Be a Gentle but Steadfast Parent | Oh Eun-young | Korea | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
| 3 | 4 | 9787544276986 | 2019-10 | Educated: A Memoir | Tara Westover | United States of America | Nan Hai Publishing Co. |
| 4 | 5 | 9787550268517 | 2016-07 | Positive Discipline | Jane Nelsen | United States of America | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| Not Ranked | 6 | 9787559643346 | 2020-09 | Blue Flame | Yuzuru Hanyu | Japan | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| Not Ranked | 7 | 9787559646767 | 2020-12 | Blue Flame (2) | Yuzuru Hanyu | Japan | Beijing Union Publishing Co., Ltd. |
| 12 | 8 | 9787521736816 | 2022-01 | Guns, Germs, and Steel | Jared Diamond | United States of America | CITIC Publishing House Co., Ltd |
| 6 | 9 | 9787511714152 | 2016-10 | How to Talk so Teens will Listen and Listen so Teens will Talk | Adele Faber, Elaine Mazlish | United States of America | Central Compilation & Translation Press |
| 8 | 10 | 9787505737488 | 2016-12 | What Life Should Mean to You | Alfred Adler | Austria | China Friendship Publishing Company |
| 9 | 11 | 9787505745681 | 2018-12 | The Crowd: A Study of the Popular Mind | Gustave Le Bon | France | China Friendship Publishing Company |
| 19 | 12 | 9787522200514 | 2021-05 | Nonviolent Communication | Marshall B.Rosenberg | United States of America | Huaxia Publishing House |
| 13 | 13 | 9787520711531 | 2019-11 | A Compass to Fulfillment | Kazuo Inamori | Japan | Orient Press |
| 5 | 14 | 9787201146171 | 2019-05 | The Why Cafe | John P. Strelecky | United States of America | Tianjin People’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 15 | 9787111551287 | 2021-04 | Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise | Anders Ericsson, Robert Pool | United States of America | China Machine Press |
| 15 | 16 | 9787521719499 | 2022-01 | Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order: Why Nations Succeed and Fail | Ray Dalio | United States of America | CITIC Publishing House Co.,Ltd |
| 10 | 17 | 9787553522838 | 2021-06 | Maybe You Should Talk to Someone | Lori Gottlieb | United States of America | Shanghai Culture Publishing House |
| 16 | 18 | 9787521719253 | 2020-08 | The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read (and Your Children Will Be Glad That You Did) | Philippa Perry | Britain | CITIC Publishing House Co.,Ltd |
| 18 | 19 | 9787210096528 | 2017-09 | Mindset: The New Psychology of Success | Carol S.Dweck | United States of America | Jiangxi People’s Publishing House |
| Not Ranked | 20 | 9787115536198 | 2020-05 | Heart: Kazuo Inamori’s Philosophy of Life | Kazuo Inamori | Japan | Posts & Telecommunications Publishing House |
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.
More from us on the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on international book publishing is here.