The Bookseller.com

15th October 2008

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Brand surges ahead in Christmas run-up

19.12.07 Philip Stone

Russell Brand's My Booky Wook (Hodder) is leading the race for this year's Christmas number one slot. The flamboyant comic's memoir sold 91,192 copies in the week ending 15th December through Nielsen BookScan, 10,000 more copies than closest rival Nigella Express (Chatto) and 20,000 more than Richard Hammond's On the Edge (Weidenfeld).

Hodder sales director Lucy Hale said that recent blanket publicity, including "Richard & Judy" and signings at Waterstone's and Asda, had "completely exhausted" Brand, but his ubiquity had driven the book's success. Ben Dunn, the Hodder editor, added: "He was very candid in what he wrote. It had all the ingredients."

The news came as retail analysts predicted a last-minute surge on the high street, and booksellers started to push up prices on top hardbacks to preserve margin.

The overall UK book market leapt another 17% last week, with the price rises finally helping value outpace volume. But sales were still flat when compared to the equivalent period in 2006.

Retail Philip Stone Christmas Russell Brand