Mainers are not only buying local; they’re reading local, too.
The bestselling titles in a variety of categories at several Maine independent bookstores this year are either set in Maine, true stories of Maine, or by Maine authors, according to a Press Herald survey of seven Maine booksellers.
The recent cookbook “Big Heart, Little Stove,” by Erin French of The Lost Kitchen restaurant in Freedom, has become the bestselling book ever for Print: A Bookstore in Portland, which has sold more than 5,000 copies since its Oct. 31 release.
At the nine Sherman’s Maine Coast Book Shops – located mostly along the coast from Portland to Bar Harbor – “The Midcoast” by Adam White was the top-selling work of fiction. The book focuses on a family’s criminal enterprise in Damariscotta, where White grew up. The book is being developed for a possible Hulu TV show.
Hannah Lafferrandre, co-manager of Sherman’s Maine Coast Book Shop in Portland, stands in front of some of the best-selling books of 2023. Ben McCanna/Staff Photographer
“I think people think of us as a place where they can buy local and support local authors. We’ve seen that for a while now,” said Josh Christie, co-owner of Print, which has been open for seven years. “The majority of events we do are with local authors and that pushes sales.”
Plus, there’s the tourist factor. Christie says that a book by a local author or on a local subject might come out in the fall or winter of one year – and sell well – but then it gets a boost the next summer when visitors come to Maine looking for gifts or books to remind them of their happy times in the state.
As 2023 comes to a close, here’s a look at more of the top sellers at Maine bookstores this year.
WHAT’S NEW?
The idea that Maine books make good gifts may help Maine-themed books that are released late in the year, before Christmas. The illustrated memoir “Maine: A Love Story” by Portland woodblock print maker Blue Butterfield was released in November and almost immediately became a top seller at Nonesuch Books & More in South Portland, Longfellow Books in Portland and Gulf of Maine Books in Brunswick. In early December, it had been the top-selling book at Nonesuch for two weeks.
Ari Gersen, owner of Longfellow Books with two of the best-selling books in his store this year, “Night of the Living Rez” and “Maine: A Love Story.” Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
Also an instant hit at Gulf of Maine Books in early December was the local history book “A Long, Long Time Ago: Major Rock and Roll Concerts in Southern Maine, 1955 to 1977,” by Ford S. Reiche, which went on sale in November. The book is full of colorful images of posters, tickets and old Maine venues, along with information about some of the rock legends who played in Maine, including Bill Haley and His Comets, Jimi Hendrix and The Everly Brothers.
“People are standing with the book, remembering shows that they went to,” said Gulf of Maine Books co-owner Gary Lawless. “(It’s) just a wonderful historical document.”
Some new books that have done well at local bookstores late this year were helped by publicity. French was already a nationally-known celebrity chef when “Big Heart, Little Stove” came out, and she did an event at the State Theatre in Portland in November that helped drive local sales, Christie said.
OLD FRIENDS
Some of the Maine-centric books that sold well this year were also at the top of stores’ sales lists last year, too. At Back Cove Books in Portland, “Night of the Living Rez” by Levant author Morgan Talty, featuring stories based on the Penobscot Nation reservation north of Bangor where Talty grew up, has been the top-selling short stories/fiction book at the store for two years in a row. It came out in July of 2022.
It was also the top-selling book of the year at Longfellow Books. By early December, it had been on the Longfellow Books storewide bestsellers list for 65 consecutive weeks. Talty’s book is also on the year-end bestsellers list in various categories at Gulf of Maine Books, Print and Sherman’s. Talty is scheduled to release his debut novel next summer, and he already has a built in audience for it, if local bookstore sales are any indication.
“The Midcoast” by Adam White fills a shelf at Longfellow Books in Portland. Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
THE WAY BOOKS SHOULD BE
Maine has always been a popular setting for novels, nationally, whether the stories are written by a Mainer or not. “Happy Place” by Emily Henry, set in the fictional town of Knott’s Harbor, Maine, spent 15 consecutive weeks on the New York Times bestseller list after it was published in April. Henry, who lives near Cincinnati, has written other popular romance novels – “Beach Read,” “People We Meet on Vacation” and “Book Lovers” – but “Happy Place” was her first to take place in Maine.
The setting in the book reminds some Mainers of the Midcoast and specifically Boothbay Harbor. The book was the bestselling romance at all the Sherman’s stores this year, and maybe not coincidentally, there is a Sherman’s in Boothbay Harbor. It was also the most-borrowed romance at the Portland Public Library this year and landed on bestseller lists at Nonesuch Books.
REAL MAINE STORIES
One factual Maine story written by a Mainer showed up on several store lists this year – “Northeaster: A Story of Courage and Survival in the Blizzard of 1952” by Cathie Pelletier. The Allagash-based writer is known for novels, but in this nonfiction work she researched and followed the struggles of several ordinary Mainers caught in a monster storm, in the days before cellphones and minute-by-minute weather forecasts. The book came out in January, and the hardcover and paperback editions ended up as the top two Maine history bestsellers at the Sherman’s stores across Maine. It was also the most-borrowed local history book at the Portland Public Library.
At Nonesuch Books, the bestselling hardcover mystery of the year was “Dead Man’s Wake” by Camden author Paul Doiron, the most recent in his series about Maine game warden Mike Bowditch, which came out in June. At Sherman’s, where the staff ranked the top five Maine mystery books of the year, Doiron’s books claimed four of the spots. He’s written 14 books in the series so far. The other author in the top five for Maine mystery was Barbara Ross with “Clammed Up.” Ross is the author of the Maine Clambake cozy mysteries series, so-called because the books aren’t gory, crude or profane.
AUTHORS WHO LIVE NEAR ME
While Maine book stores of course sell books written by folks from everywhere, Back Cove Books had Maine authors top its bestsellers list in several categories. The No. 1 memoir was “Tributaries” by Ryan Brod, the bestselling short story/fiction work was Talty’s “Night of the Living Rez,” the top middle-grade graphic novel was “Picture Day” by Sarah Sax, and the top horror book was “Here in the Night” by Rebecca Turkewitz.
MORE MEDIA, PLEASE
People don’t live on books alone. They need a balanced media diet that includes music, films and TV, for a healthy lifestyle. So we asked the folks at the Bull Moose music and movie chain – with eight Maine stores and three in New Hampshire – for some of its bestsellers this year.
The new albums (vinyl and CDs) category at Bull Moose should really be called “Taylor’s Category.” Taylor Swift had four of the top six bestselling albums, including “Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions” at No. 1. The only other acts to sneak into the top six were Metallica with “72 Seasons” at No. 2 and the Rolling Stones with their new album “Hackney Diamonds” at No. 4.
The top-selling used albums were a couple of classic rock staples: “The Dark Side of the Moon” by Pink Floyd and “Nevermind” by Nirvana.
The bestselling new movie or TV series were two movies from this year: “John Wick: Chapter 4,” followed by the “Super Mario Brothers Movie.” The top two used movies or TV series were two horror classics, Stephen King’s “The Shining” from 1980 and “The Thing” from 1982.
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