Love was in the air and on the page last year. Sales of love and marriage books in the U.S. hit a five-year peak, according to research organization NPD Group. Year-over-year sales of books in this genre grew 5 percent in 2019, reaching 1.7 million copies. NPD Bookscan, which tracks the U.S. publishing market, found that the top selling book in this category for the year was “The Five Love Languages,” by Gary Chapman. Other top titles include “He’s Just Not That Into You” by Greg Behrendt and “Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man” by Steve Harvey.
Sales of love and marriage book sales tend to peak during the November-December holiday season and in February for Valentine’s Day. “This is a tried-and-true phenomenon,” said Kristen McLean, book industry analyst for NPD. “People return to and recommend trusted titles in this category over and over…it truly is the gift that keeps on giving for the reader, author, and publisher too.”