This spring and summer, the proliferation of right-wing bestsellers was touted throughout the media, along with the creation of conservative imprints at Viking and Crown. But in the past six weeks, a slew of liberal authors have dominated the bestseller lists. Now, as the 2004 election year approaches, a daunting number of books about the incumbent president and his Democratic rivals will soon fill bookstores, more than even the most conscientious voter could be expected to read.
Faced with a vast number of nonfiction titles from all points on the political spectrum, some publishers are wondering if there might be a glut similar to that on the first anniversary of 9/11. At the same time, booksellers are expressing concern that the ascendance of titles by political celebrities might cause a number of significant books with less media cachet to be overlooked.
The Fall of Polemics
Although conservative commentator Bill O'Reilly appeared at the top of the New York Times nonfiction list for October 12, the four other top five titles - by Al Franken, Madeleine Albright, Molly Ivins and Paul Krugman?are from the left. Beyond that, nine of the top 10 slots are held by political polemics, biographies or memoirs, while the 10th - Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson - concerns one of the country's premier statesmen. Of the 10, only three are from conservative media personalities, while the rest are solidly to the left.
"This year's market
seems stronger than ever," said Simon & Schuster publisher David Rosenthal, who in January will publish an embargoed, as-yet untitled exposé of the Bush White House by Pulitzer Prize-winning author and investigative reporter Ron Suskind. "I don't think I've ever seen so many books by the left on the bestseller list. It's rather astounding."
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