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Dan Brown in 2003, about the time of
"The Da Vinci Code's"
release. | |
Two years ago this month, Doubleday published a
historical thriller with an
announced first printing of 85,000 and high hopes that a little-known
writer named Dan Brown would catch on with the general public.
"We surely expected to have a huge success, but I don't think anyone
dreamed it would become a historic publication," says Stephen Rubin,
president and publisher of the Doubleday Broadway Publishing Group.
If the "Harry Potter" books stand as the essential
popular read for young people, then "The Da Vinci Code" has captured the
crown for grown-ups. A word-of-mouth
sensation from the moment it came out, Brown's
controversial mix of storytelling and speculation remains high on
best-seller lists even as it begins its third year since publication.
Twenty-five million books, in 44 languages, are in
print worldwide and no end is in sight. Booksellers expect "The Da Vinci
Code" to remain a best-seller well into 2005. A planned film version by
Oscar-winning director Ron Howard should bring in even more readers. And
at a time when consumers are supposedly minding their budgets, sales for
the $24.95 hardcover have been
so good that Doubleday still has set no date for a paperback
.
"It's been our No. 1 fiction book for two years in a row, and I can't
remember another time that happened," said Bob Wietrak, vice president of
merchandising for Barnes & Noble Inc. "People come into our store all
the time and ask for it or ask for books that are like it."
Thanks to "The Da Vinci Code," about the only books that seem able to
keep up are Brown's previous novels. "Deception Point," first released in
2001, now has 3.7 million copies in print, according to Simon &
Schuster, Brown's previous publisher. "Angels and Demons," published in
2000 and featuring "Da Vinci" protagonist Robert Langdon, has more than 8
million copies in print.
The unprecedented success of "The Da Vinci Code" has been helped by
wide access, with the book on sale everywhere from Wal-Mart to airports to
supermarkets, often proving more popular than the mass market paperbacks
available at the same outlets.
"The Da Vinci Code" has also thrived during a time when both literary
and commercial novels struggled, when a tight economy, competition from
other media and election-year tensions drove the public to nonfiction
works or away from books altogether. Publishers and booksellers say
Brown's novel has worked by combining narrative excitement and provocative
-- and disputed -- historical detail.
(BBC) |
就在兩年前的這個月，美國多布爾戴公司出版了一部歷史題材的恐怖小說，據稱首印量為八萬五千冊。這部小說的作者是丹·布朗——一位不太有名的作家，出版商殷切希望他的這部作品能俘獲大眾的心。
“我們當然期望（這本書）能夠獲得巨大的成功，但我想大家做夢都沒想到它居然成為一部歷史性暢銷書。”多布爾戴百老匯出版集團總裁、出版商斯蒂芬·魯賓說。
如果說《哈里波特》系列從書代表了年輕人的主流閱讀趣味，那么《達芬奇密碼》就贏得了成年人的青睞。布朗的小說把講故事和推理以一種有爭議的方式結合起來，從問世之初就廣為流傳，引起轟動一片，一直高居暢銷書榜前列，盡管這本書出版至今已經是第三年了。
《達芬奇密碼》被譯成44種語言在全球范圍內出版，總印量達到2500萬冊，目前這種趨勢還沒有停下來的跡象，書商們預測它將繼續成為2005年度的暢銷書。正在籌劃拍攝的電影版《達芬奇密碼》應該還會帶來更多的讀者，該片將由曾獲奧斯卡金獎的導演羅恩·霍華德執導。現在的消費者們大多都很在乎自己的口袋預算，可這本售價24.95美元的精裝書賣得太好了，所以多布爾戴公司暫不打算推出平裝本。
巴諾公司（美國最大的連鎖書店）商品廣告推銷部副總裁鮑勃·威特拉克說：“兩年來，這本書始終穩坐我們書店小說類排行榜的頭把交椅，我記得這種盛況從未發生過。總是有人走進我們的書店，開口就問有沒有這本書，或是和它類似的書。”
多虧了《達芬奇密碼》，布朗以前的小說似乎成了唯一符合他們要求的書。布朗小說先前的出版商西蒙·舒斯特出版公司表示，2001年首次出版的《終極騙術》現在已經印到370萬冊。2000年出版的《天使與魔鬼》講述的也是《達芬奇密碼》里的主角羅伯特·蘭登的故事，目前的印量已經超過800萬冊。
《達芬奇密碼》的空前成功得益于廣泛的銷售渠道，這本書幾乎隨處可見，在沃爾瑪、機場和超級市場里都可以買到，而且事實證明它總是比在同樣的地方出售的針對大眾市場的平裝本更受歡迎。
《達芬奇密碼》興盛于文學小說和商業小說爭斗不休的一個時期，時值經濟緊縮時期，來自其他媒體的競爭和選舉年帶來的壓力促使大眾倒向非文學作品，或者根本就不看書。出版商和書商們認為布朗的小說成功地將今人激動的情節敘述和引起爭議的歷史細節結合起來。
（中國日報網站譯） |
Updated: 2005-03-11 10:00