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Reflecting on the best selling authors here at Country House Library in 2022 it was interesting to see that, whilst many of the authors present are unsurprising and quite rightly perennial favourites, there were also a couple of genre-fiction entries nestled amongst the more famous classics, and a good spread of children's authors. Proof, if it was needed, that Country House Library caters to a broad range of literary tastes across a variety of ages! The top 10 best selling authors listed below is derived from purchases made via the website, but the same top ten was also mirrored on our Etsy store, beyond a modest amount of jostling for position at least.
"The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid" - Northanger Abbey, 1818
Accounting for more than 22% of our ten best-selling authors' sales in 2022, Jane Austen remains the most popular author here at Country House Library. Vintage editions of Jane Austen books, collected works of Jane Austen and the modern, cloth-bound deluxe editions of her works continue to fly off the shelves, proof that the appeal of Jane Austen's writing remains undimmed almost 250 years after her birth. Jane Austen's classics, including Sense & Sensibility, Pride & Prejudice, Emma and Northanger Abbey, continue to resonate with new generations of readers, but there is also a healthy interest in her life and times, evidenced by the popularity of her collected letters, biographies of Jane Austen, and of course the resurgence of interest in the Regency Period, reflected in the success of TV shows such as Bridgerton and Sanditon.
JANE AUSTEN COLLECTION - FOLIO SOCIETY, 1975 |
PRIDE AND PREJUDICE BY JANE AUSTEN - PENGUIN CLOTHBOUND CLASSICS |
JANE AUSTEN: WRITER IN THE WORLD - BODLEIAN LIBRARY |
"She was a lucky woman who had established a happy knack of writing what quite a lot of people wanted to read." - Agatha Christie
That the Queen of Crime, Agatha Christie, features so highly on our list is perhaps no surprise given she ranks amongst the best-selling authors of all time. A prolific writer of crime fiction, publishing approximately one book a year between 1921 and 1976, Agatha Christie also found time to author London's longest-running West End play, The Mousetrap, and whip up a tabloid storm with her own disappearance in 1926. Vintage Agatha Christie books featuring her series characters Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot are constantly in demand at Country House Library, no doubt encouraged by the numerous TV, film, stage and radio adaptations, including most recently Kenneth Branagh's Poirot films. One of the earliest Penguin authors, Agatha Christie's Penguin editions, in their distinctive green wrappers, are also always popular here.
AGATHA CHRISTIE COLLECTED WORKS - 18 HERON BOOKS, 1970S |
AGATHA CHRISTIE’S THEY CAME TO BAGHDAD - COLLINS FIRST EDITION, 1951 |
AGATHA CHRISTIE’S THE SECRET ADVERSARY - PAN, 1955 |
"Keep good company, read good books, love good things and cultivate soul and body as faithfully as you can" - Louisa May Alcott
Number three in our list of best selling authors is another female writer, and the only American author to feature in 2022's Top Ten, Louisa May Alcott. Alcott grew up in a genteel but impoverished New England household; exposed to the influential literary and philosophical figures of her time from a young age, she quickly developed a free and independent spirit, not dissimilar to her fictional alter-ego Jo March. However, it was her sense of familial duty that was to prove must decisive in setting her on the path of writer, experimenting with a variety of forms and genres to support her parents and three sisters. She was an author of serial thrillers and Gothic romances, but it was her coming-of-age books for children that made her a household name in America and beyond, especially her beloved March family trilogy, comprising Little Women, Little Men and Jo's Boys.
LOUISA MAY ALCOTT’S NICE WIVES C.1890 |
LITTLE MEN BY LOUISA MAY ALCOTT 1973 - BANCROFT |
JO'S BOYS BY LOUISA MAY ALCOTT - REGENT CLASSICS |
"We never tire of the friendships we form with books." - Charles Dickens
No other author illustrates the contradictions at the heart of Victorian era Britain as well as Charles Dickens. A celebrity in his own lifetime, and a writer whose works have never been out of print, Charles Dickens remains one of our most popular authors. Vintage editions from the 19th & 20th centuries continue to appeal to readers young & old alike, including those illustrated by the well-known artists of their day, such as Phiz (Hablot K. Browne), George Cruikshank and Arthur Rackham. The collected works of Dickens uniformly bound also makes for a great shelf-filler, and is bound (so to speak) to impress your friends!
CHARLES DICKENS' OLIVER TWIST - CHAPMAN AND HALL |
CHARLES DICKENS’S THE PICKWICK PAPERS - THE WESTMINSTER PRESS, C.1926 |
THE 'ILLUSTRATED' DICKENS - TWO VOLUME COLLECTION |
"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us." - The Fellowship of the Ring, 1954
A genre defining author par excellence, father of fantasy fiction, it is as hard to avoid the influence of Tolkien today as it was avoid the eye of Sauron if you were a ring-bearer... Whilst some of Tolkien's popularity in 2022 must be down to the buzz surrounding Amazon's Rings of Power series, it is his ability to create and develop a fully immersive mythical history, philology, genealogy and theology that really must take the credit. From The Hobbit, written for younger readers, through to The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales, Tolkien takes the willing reader on a journey unlike any other, 'there and [hopefully] back again'.
J. R. R. TOLKIEN'S FARMER GILES OF HAM 1969 - ALLEN & UNWIN |
J.R.R. TOLKIEN'S THE LORD OF THE RINGS TRILOGY - UNWIN HARDBACKS 1978-80 |
TOLKIEN'S WORLD BY GARETH HANRAHAN & PETER MCKINSTRY |
"Writers should be read, but neither seen nor heard" - Daphne Du Maurier
A refreshing Top Ten entry in our Best Selling Authors of 2022, Daphne Du Maurier was something of a pleasant surprise for us. Without question deserving, we have been delighted by the popularity of her lesser known titles in the last twelve months. Queen of West Country Gothic, no other 20th century author perhaps better inhabits the 'through a glass darkly' ethos. Vintage editions of Daphne Du Maurier's most famous works continue to pull in a diverse readership at Country House Library, whether it is the distinctive yellow-jacketed Victor Gollancz editions (including the occasional first edition) or attractive paperback editions.
DAPHNE DU MAURIER'S REBECCA - GUILD, 1978 |
DAPHNE DU MAURIER’S MARY ANNE 1974 - GOLLANCZ |
DAPHNE DU MAURIER’S THE GLASS-BLOWERS 1975 |
"Writing for children is an art in itself, and a most interesting one" - Enid Blyton
One of the most productive authors for children of all time, with an output in excess of 400 books to her name, Enid Blyton dominated the world of British children's books for the large part of the 20th century. Even now Blyton continues to be one of our top ten best selling authors of 2022! From her simpler, larger format pictorial books for younger children through to her series of novels for those slightly older, including the 'Adventure' books, the Famous Five and the Secret Seven, Blyton has provided an alternative backdrop for many children growing up since the 1920s. Country House Library hosts a wonderful selection of Enid Blyton vintage books for all ages, so crack open the ginger pop and get stuck into one of your favourite Blyton books! Rather!
THE SHIP OF ADVENTURE BY ENID BLYTON - MACMILLAN, 1958 |
ENID BLYTON'S WELL DONE SECRET SEVEN 1953 |
ENID BLYTON'S ANIMAL LOVER'S BOOK 1952 - FIRST EDITION |
"I do so hate finishing books. I would like to go on with them for years." - Beatrix Potter
Beatrix Potter never goes out of fashion it seems. Her small format books were intentionally designed with children's smaller hands in mind, one of many aspects of the famous 'Peter Rabbit' books which Beatrix Potter herself oversaw, which also included the layout of the pages and the placement of her illustrations - she even insisted on the colour-printing process used by publishers Warne! The shape, colour and contents of her little books has endeared them to children for more than 120 years, and vintage Beatrix Potter books make the perfect complement to any younger child's library. Books on the life, art and world of Beatrix Potter also prove to be consistently popular among our readers. The first editions, first printings of Beatrix Potter are collectable and can be valuable, though hard to identify, so do let us know if you have any suspiciously old ones squirreled away somewhere! But enough rabbiting on.
BEATRIX POTTER’S THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT COMPLETE SET - 23 BOOKS, 1995 |
THE ART OF BEATRIX POTTER - WARNE, 1955 - FIRST EDITION |
MY PHOTOGRAPH ALBUM - A BEATRIX POTTER KEEPSAKE BY FRANCES BRACE 1988 |
"There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all." - The Picture of Dorian Gray, 1891
Oscar Wilde did also write for children, most famously perhaps The Happy Prince and The Selfish Giant, but it is more for his more adult-oriented poetry, prose and plays that he is renowned. His play Salome earned the disapproval of the Lord Chamberlain, which resulted in it being first performed in France, but it was the first UK book edition published in 1894 that really created a stir, illustrated famously by the young Aubrey Beardsley. Fortunately Wilde was accustomed to controversy by this time, his only novel The Picture of Dorian Gray also deemed borderline scandalous upon its publication in 1890/91, thankfully recognised to be a masterpiece of gothic literature subsequently. Wilde's most popular sellers at CHL are probably his later plays, Lady Windermere's Fan and The Importance of Being Earnest, though vintage editions of Wilde's De Profundis and The Ballad of Reading Gaol also find good homes on a regular basis.
OSCAR WILDE'S SALOME - HARTSDALE HOUSE |
OSCAR WILDE'S LADY WINDERMERE'S FAN 1919 - METHUEN |
DE PROFUNDIS BY OSCAR WILDE - METHUEN, 1911 |
"The distance between insanity and genius is measured only by success." - Ian Fleming
In at number ten, and the second of our genre fiction entries, comes the Man with the Golden Pen, Ian Fleming. Less well known as the author of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (adapted for the screen by Roald Dahl no less) and his books on 'Thrilling Cities' and diamond smuggling, Fleming of course seared his name on to the public consciousness with his series of books featuring the debonair, dangerous and disarming secret agent, James Bond. Commencing with Casino Royale in 1953 and finishing with Octopussy & The Living Daylights in 1966, Fleming published fourteen James Bond books, serving as the basis for the numerous 007 films that immortalised the character! Vintage James Bond books are always popular here, including the occasional first edition, though it is highly probable there is a spike each time a new film is released...and long may that continue!
JAMES BOND 007 COLLECTION BY IAN FLEMING - 13 PAN BOOKS, C.1960 |
JAMES BOND 007: ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE BY IAN FLEMING - BOOK CLUB, 1963 |
007 JAMES BOND: CASINO ROYALE BY IAN FLEMING 1963-5 |
The Country House Library bookshelves are bulging with wonderful vintage titles written by an enormous spread of famous authors, so if you enjoyed browsing this top ten list of our best selling authors for 2022 do check out our full range of literature. Do also let us know what your favourite vintage read in 2022 was via the Comments form below!
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