Back to school in figures

Paris (AFP)

The first titles of autumn fall have begun to appear and a total of 524 novels including 336 French and 188 foreigners are expected in bookstores by the end of October.

Of the 336 French novels of the autumn, 82 are first novels.

Sign of the fragility of the world of publishing (the turnover of publishers decreased by 4.38% in 2018 compared to the previous year), it is the tightest re-entry in 20 years, has made notice the professional magazine Livres Hebdo.

But the challenge remains daunting. Even though, according to a GfK study published this summer, back-to-school sales fell 32% in six years, this period still accounts for a quarter of annual sales of large format novels.

The average circulation of new releases barely exceeds 6,000 copies, according to figures from the National Union of Publishing (SNE).

Publishers, however, rely on a few headliners to "boost" sales. Thus, Albin Michel, has planned a draw of 160,000 copies for "Thirst", the 28th novel of the Belgian novelist Amelie Nothomb.

The new title of Sorj Chalandon, "A fierce joy" (Grasset) will be shot at 50,000 copies. The 11th novel by Karine Tuil, "Les choses humaines" (Gallimard) was printed at 45,000 copies.

Authors and publishers have in their sights the fall literary awards. In the coming days, the novels of the fall will pass to the mill of the selections of the juries of the literary prizes.

Thus, the Goncourt jury, which awards the most prestigious literary prize in the French-speaking world, must make its first selection known on September 3rd (the prize will be awarded on November 4th).

The other juries (Renaudot, Médicis, Femina) will publish their own selection in the wake of the Goncourt jurors.

The finalists of the Fnac novel prize will be known from August 28th. The next day, August 29, will be awarded the prize "Envoyé par La Poste" and the Stanislas prize which reward the first novels. The first major literary prizes (Le Monde newspaper prize, Nancy booksellers' prize, etc.) will be awarded the first week of September.

© 2019 AFP