U.S. Fiction Strong Abroad

by Jim Milliot -- Publishers Weekly, 4/10/2006

The end of March was a good period for American writers overseas—they claimed seven of the nine top fiction spots on PW's monthly look at international bestsellers. The three top bestsellers in France were by American authors, with Stephen King and Patricia Cornwell new to the list. Another Cornwell title, Predator, was set for release in France last week.

While the top fiction titles in Spain included J.K. Rowling and Dan Brown, Sweden's list had a few more surprising titles. Christopher Paolini's The Eldest was #1 in that country at the end of March, while The Kalahari Typing School for Men, the fourth in Alexander McCall Smith's The No. 1 Detective Agency series, published here in 2003 by Pantheon, was #3.

Spain's fiction bestseller list took a twist just below the top three; two books with Brooklyn in their titles cracked the top 10. Paul Auster's Brooklyn Follies, released in the U.S. in December by Holt, was in the #4 spot, and Call Me Brooklyn, a critically acclaimed first novel by Eduardo Lago, was #8. Lago is published in Spain by Planeta, which is making Brooklyn available in Spanish in the U.S., but English rights have not been sold. The novel recounts the life of a dead Spanish writer who grew up in Brooklyn, as reconstructed by his journalist friend.