Dr. Seuss died in 1991. Seven new books have been published under his name since his death. The difference between this situation and what’s going on with Harper Lee is there is no controversy surrounding the release of his books after his death. It probably helps that he’s probably more popular now than he was during his lifetime.
What Pet Should I Get? is his newest book to be released posthumously. If you’re questioning my above statement about his popularity, then let me tell you a fun fact. This new book is currently the top selling book on Amazon. That’s right. It’s outselling Go Set a Watchman.
The main reason I’m writing this today is to talk about his popularity rather than his new book. Is there anyone in America who doesn’t at least know his name? I’ve stated on here several times that I’ve never actually read one of his books, but I could probably name 5+ just off the top of my head. And I’m not the only one. I read from a reputable source that he’s sold more than 450 million books since his death. I mean, holy shit. Wow. That number is simply ridiculous. I’m not sure there’s another author out there who could sell that many books in the first 25 years after his or her death. And there will be even more books forthcoming.
What I want to ask y’all is why you think he’s managed to remain so popular in the two and a half decades since his death. Sure there are some authors who will always sell books no matter how long it’s been since their death, but he’s basically outselling all living authors right now besides the handful of mega bestsellers! How? Someone enlighten me because I’m really curious.
You can view the Amazon product page for the new book here.
On this day in 2014 I published United Way’s Reading Together Program.
Johnny Reads 