Not every book, mind you. I’m talking one book in particular – a book put together by a Congressional panel on the causes of the Great Recession.
The book will be available online for free, yet 5 of the 5 publishing houses approached offered bids for the proposed book. Now there’s a deal in the works with Hachette Book Group’s Little, Brown for an expected December release.
Doesn’t sound a like a big seller to you? Actually, Business Week thinks it will be, saying sales are expected “to be brisk, particularly for the e-book version containing links to documents, audio tapes, and video clips.”
Although this seems to be the first time taxpayers may get some of the money, it’s not the first time government inquiries have been made into books.
The 9/11 Commission Report, published in 2004 by W. W. Norton—which passed on the economic crisis book—holds the record for the genre, with more than 1 million copies in print. The Starr Report, on the investigation of President Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky, sold 200,000 copies.Don’t think I’ll be checking my mailbox for a check.
Oh, that's right! I'd forgotten the Starr Report, but it had me laughing at the time with all its sales!
ReplyDeleteI don't think I'll be buying it!
ReplyDeleteThink I'll pass as well.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think I’ll be adding this one to my to-read list unless I start suffering from insomnia. However, I hope us taxpayers make loads of money!)
ReplyDeleteI won't be buying it either, but it'd be interesting to see how much goes to taxpayers and where it actually goes (seriously doubt it would be our pockets).
ReplyDeleteThink I'll pass too.
ReplyDeleteMason
Thoughts in Progress
Interesting. No, I won't be buying either anyway. But I'll be watching!
ReplyDeleteSylvia Dickey Smith
A War of Her Own
I'm not planning on reading it but it might be interesting to read the reviews. I'm surprised the huge health care bill hasn't been made into a book.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I'd have the time to trudge through a huge book like this. It would have to be a topic that really interested me.
ReplyDeleteNot me. Not interested. I would read highlights and selected sections possibly, but it would have to be from a source other than the government.
ReplyDeleteStephen Tremp
Should be interesting to see where the money ends up!
ReplyDeleteMy Word Verification for this post: pubwar :)
I bought both the Starr report and the 9/11 Commission Report.
ReplyDeleteThe Starr report was boring, except from a couple of entertaining chapters, hehe.
About half the 9/11 report was were interesting, about the planning and execution of the terrorist attacks, a real-life thriller.
Cold As Heaven
Seriously!? Why do I miss out on all the fun? Oh, that's right, because I'm Canadian.
ReplyDeleteCD
Why pay for something you can get for free?
ReplyDeleteGonna make a ton of money there...
Count me out.
ReplyDeleteHow funny, Jemi. Sometimes the verification word does seem to fit the post. I wonder if it's chance?
ReplyDeleteCold As Heaven, you are the first person I have heard of who bought one, let alone two!
Same for me, Carol.
Famous people, er governments always get the big advances. I bet they got six figures.
ReplyDeleteThat's so strange!
And the money never trickles down to the small investors, you and I.
ReplyDeleteNot something I'm putting high on my TBR list.
ReplyDeleteAlso read a news bit today that Tony Blair is writing a memoir and donating the 7.5 million advance as well as all royalties to a fund for soldiers wounded in service. Bloody good, what.
Ok. I personally won't be buying it, but wow.
ReplyDeleteSheesh! I never would have guessed this, Helen!
ReplyDeleteWhat? How weird! That sounds like a snore-fest for sure. I guess if I'm having trouble sleeping, I know which book to buy!
ReplyDeleteMaryann, that is indeed bloody good!
ReplyDeleteI don't think I'd even get it to put me to sleep, Julie.
When I first heard about this I was a little concerned, since anything produced by the Government is automatically in the public domain. Then I saw that the raw info will still be available online for free and had no problem with it. If the Government can generate a little revenue through book sales, that's fine by me as long as the info is still available to the public.
ReplyDelete~jon
So, our government officials that can't manage a budget, continue to tax the heck out of everyone while giving themselves and their friends raises/bailouts, are now going to sell a book to make money off their mistakes and our penalties while trying to get us to pay to read about it? Omg... I'll bet the money doesn't even go toward the national debt. Hrmph.
ReplyDelete