Top 10 best selling fiction books of all time: From Don Quixote to Alice in Wonderland

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

The most loaned books in the world are considered to be The Bible, The Koran and Quotes from Chairman Mao, each of which has sold billions of copies. However, the sales figures for these books are almost impossible to track. In our review, we propose to get acquainted with the list of books that for many years have remained in the top sales in the world book markets. Perhaps someone is familiar with all the books from this list, while someone else has yet to get acquainted with famous works.

"The cunning hidalgo Don Quixote of La Mancha", Miguel de Cervantes

The work of the Spanish writer was first published in the early 17th century, and since then it has sold more than 500 million copies in different languages around the world. A touching and fascinating story of an impoverished nobleman, who has read a lot of heroic knightly novels and decided to fight evil in all available ways, can hardly leave anyone indifferent. Despite the fact that Don Quixote and his faithful Sancho Panza constantly get into ridiculous stories, it is simply impossible not to empathize with them.

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

The work of Charles Dickens was published in 1859, and in the XXI century the number of copies of the book sold has already exceeded 200 million. The historical novel, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution, is considered the premier work of English prose and is a must in school.

The Lord of the Rings by John Ronald Ruel Tolkien

150 million copies of Tolkien's books have been sold since the epic novel was first published in 1954. It seems that since its appearance on book shelves, the popularity of the work has only increased. In addition to the book, a film adaptation of the novel, theatrical performances, video games and board games appeared. In addition, the emergence of role-playing games is associated with "The Lord of the Rings".

The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupery

The tale-tale is the most famous work of the French writer. The book was first published in 1943, at the height of World War II. Since then, over 140 million copies have been sold, and The Little Prince has been translated into over 300 languages and dialects. For 77 years of its existence, the work has not lost its relevance. Every year, at least a million copies of The Little Prince are sold around the world, and sometimes sales reach two million in 12 months.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling

The first book in the Harry Potter series was a sensation. In the 23 years since the first edition of the Harry Potter book, the book has been translated into 80 languages, and over 120 million copies have already been sold worldwide. Interest in the little wizard does not fade away to this day, and every day adults and children around the world rediscover the fascinating world of Harry Potter.

Ten Little Indians by Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie's detective novel first saw the light of day in 1939, and throughout the English-speaking world, the book was published under the title And There Was No One. In more than 90 years since the first publication, more than 100 million copies have been sold in the world, and Christie herself claimed that this work was the most difficult to write in her entire writing career.

"The Master and Margarita", Mikhail Bulgakov

The author wrote his novel for more than 10 years, and he saw the light of day after Mikhail Bulgakov was gone. At the same time, the novel was first published in the form of a book in Paris, in 1967, and in the Soviet Union the first book edition in Russian appeared only in 1973. Prior to that, the novel was published in the Moscow magazine with a 12% reduction in the author's text and in the same form in Estonian in 1968. Since the first edition, more than 100 million copies have been sold in the world, Bulgakov's book has been translated into 80 languages.

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again by John Ronald Ruel Tolkien

Another Tolkien work, first published in 1937, has surpassed the 100 million threshold since the start of sales. This little novel laid the foundation for the writer’s later work, The Lord of the Rings.

Dream in the Red Chamber by Cao Xueqin

The family saga, the first 80 chapters of which were written by the Qing Dynasty Chinese writer Cao Xueqing, was originally published under the title "Notes on the Stone" in 1763. Another 40 chapters of the work remained unfinished and were finalized almost 30 years later by the publisher Gao E and his assistant Cheng Weiyuan, so the entire book was published in 1791. More than 100 million copies have been sold to date.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

The tale of the famous mathematician, written back in 1865, has long and firmly won the hearts of adults and very young readers. The number of books sold, exceeding 100 million, speaks for itself, as does the number of feature films and animated films based on the work.

Many writers dream of a book that will not only make the author famous, but will also bring him very solid royalties. Some people do it. Their books are published in millions of copies, their works are filmed, souvenirs with heroes are produced and, accordingly, all this brings literary men a very decent income. We invite you to remember books, the authors of which became millionaires thanks to their creativity.