Ten years after its birth, the effect of the August 12, I buy a Quebec book movement is still being felt. This year, many of the books that have just been released have been the big winners of the day, tells us the Gaspard list, which lists retail sales in independent bookstores.
For example, in literature, Line Richard’s Rumor of the Ressac, which has just won the Robert-Cliche prize, tops the sales charts, followed by Kau Minuat – Once again, by Joséphine Bacon. , also released at the beginning of August. But sure values also appear in the first ten positions, such as Kukum, by Michel Jean (2020), and Where I hide, by Caroline Dawson (2021), and other novels which have benefited from good press since a year, like What I Know About You, by Éric Chacour (third position), and Sailors Can’t Swim, by Dominique Scali (fourth position).
In youth, it is also three new releases that were purchased the most on August 12: Nutshimit – Un bain de forêt, by Melissa Mollen Dupuis and Elise Gravel (which alone occupies three of the first ten positions), Aventurosaure – Volume 5, by Julien Paré-Sorel, and The Drawer of Stockings All Alone, by Orbie.
It is followed by the Little Astronaut, by Jean-Paul Eid, which for its part was launched more than two years ago.
The site Les libraires, which lists online sales only, confirms this list in a way, since Rose à l’île is in first position in the top 100 sales of August 12, Nitshimit, in second and The rumor of the ressac , in fourth.
In addition to the best-selling titles, the effect of August 12 affects all the books available in bookstores. In new fiction, for example, the number of different titles sold increased by 113% – there were 424 on the previous four Saturdays, and 903 on August 12. For books published more than a year ago, we go from 1478 different titles before August 12 to 3794 the same day, an increase of 157%.
In 10 years, concludes Gaspard’s study, August 12 has profoundly changed purchasing habits, and it is the literature sector that is the winner. Before 2014, this sector represented 9 purchases out of 100 books in bookstores, while the school sector occupied the largest share of the cake, with 41 out of 100. This year, the proportion is completely reversed, since it is 41 books of literature out of 100 which found takers on August 12.
