The Best-Selling Book in the World

   In the world of eBooks and electronic readers, it is more difficult to keep up with the exact number of books printed/emailed and read. The Holy Bible is purported to be the greatest selling book of all time, but is it?  Here are a few examples:

Single Volume Books Sold:
100,000,000 copies — Dreams of the Red Chamber (1791)   Cao Xueqin    

107,000,000 copies — Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (1997)   JK Rowling

140,000,000 copies — The Hobbit (1937)   JRR Tolkien

150,000,000 copies — The Lord of the Rings (1955)   JRR Tolkien

6,001,500,000 copies — Holy Bible (1500 BC-100 AD)   40 authors.

   There has never been a single-volume book that remotely approaches the Bible in sales.  We can level the playing field if we include the most successful Series of books:

Series of Books Sold:
65,000,000 copies     — Left Behind (1996-2007)   LaHaye/Jenkins

130,000,000 copies — Chicken Soup for the Soul (1997)   Canfield/Hansen

450,000,000 copies — Harry Potter (1997-)   JK Rowling

6,001,500,000 copies — Holy Bible (1500 BC-100 AD)   40 authors.

   There has nev ...