Cookbook Buyers Predict Holiday Hits

By Lynn Andriani -- Publishers Weekly, 11/24/2008 8:12:00 AM

Despite most booksellers’ predictions for a gloomy holiday season, cookbook buyers at the major chains seem optimistic. “If we didn’t have so many great cookbooks it might be more difficult, but we’re having a great season so far,” said Borders cookbook buyer Ellen Clark. Clark and Patricia Arancibia, cookbook merchandiser for Barnes & Noble.com, told PW what they think will be the season’s bestselling cookbooks. A lot of the usual suspects are involved, but both made bets on sleepers, as well.

Unsurprisingly, books by Food Network personalities landed high on both Clark’s and Arancibia’s lists. Borders and B&N both reported strong sales for Giada's Kitchen by Giada de Laurentiis (Clarkson Potter), Martha Stewart's Cooking School (Clarkson Potter) and Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics by Ina Garten (Clarkson Potter). B&N also listed Rachael Ray's Big Orange Book (Clarkson Potter). And while The Bon Appetit Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook by Barbara Fairchild (Wiley) doesn’t have a celebrity name attached to it, it has a big brand. Both stores mentioned it in their holiday rundowns, and Clark went as far to say that she makes a recipe from the book almost every week. “I have not been disappointed at all,” she said, citing a roasted squash with fennel and cumin, and a nectarine cake as both delicious. Another obvious choice that B&N says will be in demand this holiday is Paula Deen's My First Cookbook (Simon & Schuster), a book for kids who want to learn how to cook.

Much more interesting are the buyers’ picks for surprise hits. Borders’s Clark called out A Platter of Figs and Other Recipes by David Tanis (Artisan) which was a Gourmet Book Club pick in September, and Ten by Sheila Lukins (Workman), co-author of The Silver Palate Cookbook as books with strong holiday sales potential. A couple of indies made it onto her list, too: Stewart, Tabori & Chang’s Baked by Matt Lewis and Andrews McMeel’s The Art & Soul of Baking, which was published in association with the cookware chain Sur la Table. Also in the baking category is Bakewise by Shirley Corriher (Scribner), which Clark and Arancibia think could be a big hit.

And then there’s Hello, Cupcake! Irresistibly Playful Creations Anyone Can Make by Alan Richardson and Karen Tack (Houghton Mifflin), which has been out since April and performing extremely well. Clark and Arancibia listed it as a possible sleeper hit, and they also both touched on Under Pressure: Cooking Sous Vide by Thomas Keller (Artisan), a high-end cookbook that most home cooks won’t ever cook from. Clark’s other luxury cookbook picks are A Day at elBulli by Ferran Adria (Phaidon) and Alinea by Grant Achatz (Ten Speed). Clark called Alinea “the ultimate foodie cookbook.”

Cookbooks are one of Borders’s “highest ramping categories,” said Clark. “Cookbook sales go along [throughout the year], but at Christmas they spike so hugely.” Arancibia concurred: “Cookbooks is a strong category for us, especially during the holidays.”