What’s Best Selling-Most Published Book of All Time? Surprising Facts

According to the Guiness Book of World Records: “The best-selling book of all time is the Christian Bible. It is impossible to know exactly how many copies have been printed in the roughly 1,500 years since its contents were standardized, but research conducted by the British and Foreign Bible Society in 2021 suggests that the total number probably lies between 5 and 7 billion copies.”

According to that same source: “Before the advent of the printing press, the number of Bibles in the world was very small. Even though it was the most common book in the Christian world, the enormous outlay of time and money required to reproduce such a large book by hand meant that complete editions were extremely rare and valuable.

This began to change with the development of printing technology in the mid-1400s. In the 50 years that followed the Gutenberg Bible in 1454, it has been estimated that European printers produced 15 million books, the majority of which were Bibles. As technology improved and literacy rates increased, so too did the rate of Bible production. By 1815, the total number of Bibles printed numbered around 1.3 billion.”

According to Deseret News, associated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (a.k.a.: the Mormon Church or Mormons), they listed the top 10 books of all time as follows in 2023.

1. The Bible — 5 to 7 billion

Words Rated predicts there are currently 6 billion copies of the Bible in circulation. The site says that 6.4 Bibles are sold every 10 seconds.

The communists come in a distant #2.

2. ‘Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung’ — 900 million

This book was written in 1946 by the People’s Liberation Army and contains 267 aphorisms from Mao Zedong, according to the BBC. …

In an article for Medium, John Welford, editor of “The World’s Great Art,” said over 900 million copies of this book have been published worldwide. The BBC added that the Chinese Communist Party had hundreds of printing houses built to produce enough books for the public.

That should give people in the U.S. and around the world pause. While the Bible is clearly the #1 best selling, most produced, most read book of all time, the next highest is one published by communists for communists and those that they hope to keep or convert to communism.

Deseret News ranked the Quran (a.k.a. Koran, Qur’an, etc.) #3, but it might be number two.

3. The Quran — at least 800 million

At least 800 million copies of the Quran have been sold worldwide since it was compiled, Words Rated reported. However, the site added that this number could be as high as 3 billion copies.

Deseret News said the following is #4, 5, and 6.

4. ‘Xinhua Zidian’ — 567 million

The “Xinhua Zidian” was published in 1953 and is the most popular Chinese dictionary.

5. ‘Don Quixote’ — at least 500 million

Published in 1605 by Miguel de Cervantes, “Don Quixote” is “the first modern novel,” according to History.com. It follows an old Spanish man who reads so many romances that he goes insane. He sets out on his own quest, conquering flocks of sheep and attacking windmills.

In 2019, Victoria News reported that Don Quixote had sold over 500 million copies and is the most sold novel of all time.

6. ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ — at least 200 million

Charles Dickens published “A Tale of Two Cities” in 1859. The story follows French aristocrat Charles Darnay, who is living in England during the French Revolution when he falls in love with Lucie Manette, the daughter of an imprisoned shoemaker. The English lawyer Sydney Carton is also in love with Manette, and the story revolves around the ideas of sacrifice and redemption.

In 2010, The Daily Telegraph reported that more than 200 million copies of the book had been sold.

Coming in at #7, per Deseret News is the Book of Mormon. Agree or disagree with their beliefs, but they are constantly trying to win converts. Christians, take note.

7. The Book of Mormon — 192 million

A member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ Quorum of the Twelve Apostles announced during the October 2020 General Conference that “192 million copies of all or part of the Book of Mormon have been published in 112 languages.”

8. ‘The Little Prince’ — 145 million

The Children’s Book Review calls this French book an “honest and beautiful story about loneliness, friendship, sadness, and love.” The article describes the plot, “The prince is a small boy from a tiny planet (an asteroid to be precise), who travels the universe, planet-to-planet, seeking wisdom. On his journey, he discovers the unpredictable nature of adults. ‘All grown-ups were once children … but only a few of them remember it.’”

9. ‘Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone’ — 120 million

In J.K. Rowling’s first book in her seven-book “Harry Potter” series, Harry Potter discovers he’s part of a magical world of witches and wizards. … Worldwide, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” has sold 120 million copies, according to Words Rated.

10. ‘The Hobbit’ — 100 million

Bilbo Baggins is the central character in J.R.R. Tolkien’s novel, “The Hobbit.” He’s part of a fictional race living a quiet life in a world among elves, goblins and trolls. When Gandalf the wizard arrives in the Shire, Bilbo reluctantly joins the quest to reclaim the dwarves’ homeland from a dragon.

As of 2021, J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit” had sold 100 million copies, according to Words Rated.

Left-leaning Yahoo News reported on 12.2.2024 the following. Keep in mind that these are U.S. sales, not global sales.

• Bible sales have surged 22% this year through October, driven by anxiety-inducing events such as the election and inflation.
• Despite a growing number of Americans identifying as non-religious, many first-time buyers are contributing to the increase in Bible sales.
• Sales have been on the rise for a while, with 9.7 million Bibles sold in 2019, 14.2 million in 2022, and 13.7 million in the first 10 months of this year.
• The demand is coming from both spiritually curious people and those looking to expand their collection, with sales rising at both Christian stores and mainstream retailers like Amazon.

…One publisher of Bibles told the Wall Street Journal it has seen a surge of interest from Generation Z and younger Americans. There are more than 8 million posts on TikTok about the Bible, as well as a slew of videos about Bibles to buy, many with hundreds of thousands or even over 1 million likes.

Reflections on the Above

Perhaps everyone has an innate hunger to know. We are routinely curious from the time that we are toddlers, with one of the most common words heard from the young: “why?” Why, mommy?” “Why, daddy?”

Consider the following examples of curiosity and the thirst to know from the Bible. In Exodus 3:3: Moses' curiosity at seeing a burning bush brought him closer to God. Recall that during the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, this series mentioned the Burning Bush.

Psalm 119:18: The psalmist asks God to spark a holy curiosity and hold his attention so he can savor God's Word.

By definition, God knows everything. For evidence of the existence of God, see the article linked here.

During the campaign, this writer said several times in various ways that Catholics, other Christians, and other believers were able to decide virtually every election in the U.S.

Our country is supposed to be a Republic that has certain democratic (small d) features. Our nation is in need of getting back to basics. The founders of our Republic knew the importance of religion as the first quote below reflects.

https://www.manufacturedhomeli...

Ignorance is nothing to be ashamed of, because we are all ignorant about any number of things. But on important issues of life and liberty overcoming ignorance is done in part through good reading.

https://www.manufacturedhomeli...

Without a sound grounding in the eternal truths bestowed by God on humanity, we are all adrift. More on this theme in the days ahead.

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https://patch.com/florida/lake...

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---> L. A. “Tony” Kovach is a publisher who has earned multiple awards in history. He and his family live in a manufactured home on private property in Winter Haven, FL. He is the co-founder of Manufactured Home Living News.com (MHLivingNews.com) and Manufactured Home Pro News.com (MHProNews.com), trade publications serving segments of the manufactured home industry. Having worked in several segments of the manufactured home industry for over 3 decades, Kovach is a widely acknowledged and often praised expert on manufactured housing. ###