10 Books That Spent Longest On The Bestseller List

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A fairly recent publication, Haig’s The Midnight Library asserts itself among the titans of best-selling literature. The tale is the speculative-ish, fantasy-ish journey of Nora Seed, a woman who has lost direction in her life and who is filled with regrets great and small. In a moment of desperation, she finds herself in the titular library, where she has access to the various alternative lives she may have lived, had she chosen just a little differently.

The novel has been praised for exploring the nuances of examining our own lives as well as highlighting just how special each of our lives really is. It’s no surprise then that this moving story was on the bestseller list for over two years, finally capping off (for now) at 106 weeks. The Midnight Library has also been adapted into a graphic novel, and has a film adaptation in the works. The movie is expected to start filming in 2027, and currently has Florence Pugh attached.

9

The Help – 108 Weeks

By Kathryn Stockett (2009)

The novel, set in segregation-era Mississippi, centers on Black maids and the white women who employ them, and has been both lauded and criticized for how it deals with the subject matter. While it was initially praised for not shying away from the realities of Jim Crow-era Mississippi, and for the powerful Black characters, it has since been criticized for playing into the white savior trope, and centering the narrative more on Skeeter than any other character.

The Help skyrocketed into the bestseller list, ultimately staying there for 108 weeks. Impressively, the film adaptation of the book released only two years after the novel’s publication. That the movie released so soon after the novel shows the hype behind the story; the book’s two-year span on the charts is proof of concept.

8

Auntie Mame – 112 Weeks

By Patrick Dennis (1955)

The stories of an orphan boy and his aunt-turned-guardian doesn’t scream as the ideal setting for a lighthearted comedic novel, yet that’s exactly what Dennis delivered way back in the mid-1950s.

We follow the aforementioned orphan boy, Patrick, and his escapades with the captivating Mame, who entrenched herself as a favorite character among scores of readers upon the novel’s release. Not only is this evident in the 112 weeks it spent on the bestseller list, but it’s also clear to see in the fact that this story was quickly turned into a movie as well as a stageplay. And while Auntie Mame may not get much of a spotlight these days, it has rightfully found its way into the number-eight spot (and deserves a spot on your shelf, too).

7

The Caine Mutiny – 123 Weeks

By Herman Wouk (1951)

This is the second oldest novel to grace this list, but that by no means detracts from its stature as a fantastic work of literature. After all, to alter a popular saying, Pulitzer prizes are forever.

While World War II may seem like ancient history to us now, it had only been over for six years when The Caine Mutiny was published, making its material, especially the retrospective moments of the novel’s protagonist, Willie Keith, especially pertinent. Set aboard an old, run-down destroyer-turned-minesweeper named the U.S.S. Caine, Keith experiences the tribulations of life as a wartime naval ensign under the fraught and questionable leadership of the ship’s captain, Lieutenant Commander Queeg.

As you might expect from the novel’s title, the leadership structure aboard the Caine isn’t exactly harmonious. But what did go swimmingly is the novel’s success. Not only did Wouk’s work win the 1952 Pulitzer Prize, but the novel also enjoyed a total of 123 weeks on the bestseller list.

6

Where the Crawdads Sing – 134 Weeks

By Delia Owens (2018)

Inspired by various real events in and around author Delia Owens’s own life, Where the Crawdads Sing is a remarkable book combining coming-of-age tropes with mystery, Southern Gothic vibes, and ecological critique.

Somehow, Owens manages to pack all these disparate elements into one cohesive narrative that nonetheless defies generic categories. Perhaps due in part to Owens’s innovation, the book enjoyed a placement on the bestseller list for 134 weeks, including a substantial run at the number-one spot and a position on the yearly bestseller lists for 2019 and 2020. Like many successful novels, Where the Crawdads Sing also received a movie adaptation in 2022, but people still flock back to the original work for the best rendition of protagonist Kya’s (mis)adventures.

5

All the Light We Cannot See – 134 Weeks

By Anthony Doerr (2014)

Historical fiction has long been a favorite genre of authors looking to explore the human condition with a little bit of temporal distance. It shows how we encounter the same struggles over time without taking away from the unique qualities of any particular historical era. In the case of Doerr’s All the Light We Cannot See, World War II once again sets the scene for a touching portrayal of connection and humanity in German-occupied France.

With a 134-week run of its own to speak of, All the Light We Cannot See ties with the previous entry according to Hawkes’s numbers. The novel shares two points of view, that of the blind French girl Marie-Laure and the German radio officer Werner. Without giving way to any spoilers, the novel shows how, often, the best facets of humanity emerge in the direst and darkest of circumstances.

As well, with a touch of (historically accurate) speculative realism for seasoning, this novel is a masterful work in perspective inspired by the most calamitous period of human history. Its long run as a bestseller and its Pulitzer victory in 2015 cement it as such.

4

The Bridges of Madison County – 164 Weeks

By Robert James Waller (1992)

The Bridges of Madison County is a prime example of a book that has often been criticized for not being particularly ‘literary’, but whose constant popularity and success belies that judgment. Waller’s novel, which delves into a brief love affair between a rural Iowa wife and a traveling photo journalist, sold an astounding number of copies since its 1992 release, but has fallen by the wayside since its astounding 164 weeks on the bestseller list.

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A novel that popular deserves at least some consideration on its merits, especially since its prose and voice are crafted very well, and it has a not only an Oscar-nominated movie adaptation, but a Tony-winning musical adaptation as well. It’s a beautiful, romantic story that pre-dates the current romance boom.

3

The Celestine Prophecy – 165 Weeks

By James Redfield (1993)

Around the same time that The Bridges of Madison County was dominating the bestseller charts, the new-age book The Celestine Prophecy was dominating right alongside it.

This may seem like a borderline inclusion in a list of best-selling fiction, as new-age and spiritual books such as this one straddle the line between philosophy told through analogy and genuine fictional stories with spiritual/philosophical lessons. But since The New York Times considered this genre to be fiction at the time, it is included, and its 165-week tenure on the list gave the journal plenty of time to consider its merits.

As one could predict from the framing of this novel, it is a story of the protagonist’s awakening on the spiritual level upon discovering a lost manuscript. The novel proceeds to elucidate the nine lessons uncovered along the protagonist’s journey, ultimately serving as a quasi-guide for the reader’s own spiritual journey.

2

The Da Vinci Code – 166 Weeks

By Dan Brown (2003)

Few books have gripped the cultural zeitgeist like Brown’s The Da Vinci Code.

Mystery, history, suspense, and a centuries-old puzzle all unfold following the suspicious death of the curator of the Louvre — this book has all the makings of a modern thriller, and it received all-time popularity worthy of one. The second of Brown’s novels following symbologist Robert Langdon launched Brown (and subsequently, Langdon) into the literary stratosphere, appearing on the bestseller list for 166 weeks. Just for another perspective here, that’s over three years as a top-15 novel.

But what’s perhaps most impressive is the fact that ripples of The Da Vinci Code can still be felt today. Since the 2003 release, Brown has enjoyed phenomenal success as a heady suspense writer, and has enjoyed several other entries on the bestseller list. And while critiques of the novel (and its 2006 film adaptation) are mixed to say the least, The Da Vinci Code nevertheless stands as a point of comparison for any other novel looking to occupy the same niche to this very day.

1

The Robe – 178 Weeks

By Lloyd C. Douglas (1942)

The oldest novel of the bunch, and the one that has the most impressive tenure on the bestseller list, Douglas’s “The Robe” accumulated a staggering 178 weeks to its name as one of the nation’s best-selling novels.

A mix of historical fiction and speculative-adjacent fiction outlining the aftermath of Jesus’s crucifixion, “The Robe” follows a Roman tribune and his conflicts during and after the trial of the messianic leader. The inner turmoil of the tribune, Marcellus, provides much of the meat of the novel, his belief that Jesus was truly innocent proving to be the crux and the solvent for his mental struggles.

While of course this novel was written well after the Roman period, and its author certainly is coming to the source material from a very specific angle (Douglas was a minister before ever setting pen to page), this novel nonetheless captures the phenomenon of experiencing history as it happens, and shows that history keeps on influencing individuals well after the initial event transpires. As it would turn out, the book’s longstanding reign in the bestseller charts echoes this sentiment all these years later.