Students favor
‘lighter’ books
Dead Cats, Garp sell well
By Dane Claussen
Of tt>* Em fate
The books that sell the best at the
University Bookstore and bestsellers
among college students nationwide are
■ somewhat similar and somewhat dif
ferent,” says Thom Chambliss, trade
book manager at the Bookstore
A list of the 10 most popular books
among college students during 1981.
published in “The Chronicle of Higher
Education," listed as the top five: "The
Official Preppy Handbook, edited by
Lisa Birnbach; ”101 Uses for a Dead
Cat.” by Simon Bond: "What Color is
Your Parachute?.” by Richard Nelson
Bolles: "Garfield Gains Weight," by Jim
Davis: and "The Simple Solution to
Rubik's Cube." by James Nourse
"Garfield," "Dead Cat,” and
"Preppy" all have sold well at the
bookstore, according to Chambliss but
the sale of the Preppy book — a flash
in-the-pan" — has "died in the last six
months "
The store, which gets 90 percent of
its business from University students,
sells about 50 copies a year of the
frequently updated "What Color is Your
Parachute7." a guide for finding jobs,
he says
The University Bookstore carries all
10 of the popular books. Chambliss
says
The second five favorites named by
the Chronicle are Princess Daisy." by
Judith Krantz: "Rage of Angels." by
Sidney Sheldon: "A Confederacy of
Dunces," by John Toole: "The Third
Wave.” by Alvin Toffler: and "Garfield
Bigger Than Life, by Jim Davis
Popular fiction sells poorlv
Not including textbooks, the Book
store stocks about 30.000 titles, one
fourth of which wouldn't be sold if the
bookstore had profit as a main objec
tive, Chambliss says
"Rage of Angels” has been a
particularly poor seller among
nationally popular books at the book
store, Chambliss says, explaining that
"current popular fiction doesn't sell
well from our store "
One of a few exceptions was "The
World According to Garp." by John
Irving, a bestseller at the store two
years ago A "bestseller” at the store
means it sells 10 copies. Chambliss
says
The bookstore staff read advanced
copies of "Garp," liked it. and promot
ed it, he says Bookdealers tend to
read a lot of books." and 90 percent of
them liked Irving's bestseller, he says
"Our buyers don't buy books be
cause they're bestsellers.' Chambers
says, adding that since many students
have little time to read books outside
the curriculum," they won't read a book
only because of its celebrity status
The bestseller at the University
Bookstore this year? A Light in the
Attic," by Shel Silverstein, a book of
poetry and “silly verse that has sold
about 150 copies
Other bestselling volumes have been
reduced-price remainders'' and
architecture books blank books,
humorous books, and psychology
books
‘Harlequins’ don't last lonp
Chambliss concurs with the Chroni
cle's contention that students are
reading 'lighter'' books now than
several years ago
The number of sociology books the
store carries is now about one-third of
what it stocked seven years ago
Several other social science sections
also are smaller
Three years ago. the store sold no
Harlequin Romance novels. Chambliss
says Now it can t keep enough on the
shelves
Several professors have expressed
displeasure at the trend but the situa
tion simply reflects sales and society,
he says
"If we tried to stick with intellectual
books we d lose money
Other area bookstores' customers
appear to have different tastes
Gary Sherp, book buyer for the Son
of Koobdooga bookstore 651 E 13th
Ave says his store sells what he calls
better quality'' books and has a
diverse group of patrons
Bestsellers at the store range from
“The Hitchhiker's Guide to the
Galaxy.” by Douglas Adams, to the
autobiography of Georgia O'Keefe to
"In Search of Reagan's Brain.' a book
compiled from Garry Trudeau's
Photo by Bob Baker
The University Bookstore caters to students' book-buying tastes, which have
shifted in recent years from social science, political science and philosophy to
humor, puzzle and "preppy" books.
Doonesbury comic strip
The store has sold bestsellers listed
by the Chronicle, but sales are light
because the store has a different
reputation, and doesn t sell primarily
to college students Sherp says
For instance, the store has the
largest selection of Penquin Classics in
Eugene, often used for University
classes but not bestsellers One recent
bestseller at the store has been
Bride s Head Revisited by Evelyn
Waugh — first published in 1945
At the Smith Family Bookstore. 768 E
13th Ave . owner Delbert Smith points
out subject areas that are popular or
shunned by his customers, the majority
of whom are college students
Currently books on media and com
munications. films and photography.
Doonesbury comics, and picture books
are popular, he says
John Irving books. Hunter Thompson
books, English and foreign language
dictionaries and non-fiction novels' —
by such authors as Tom Wolfe — also
are sought after. Smith says
Unpopular book topics — especially
those that formerly sold well — are
science fiction, most social sciences
cookbooks concentrating on vegeta
rianism and other fad books The
popularity of mystery, art. gardening
and plant books also has dropped con
siderably, he says
Psychology books, except for how
to' books for the me generation" are
out of vogue. Smith says He couldn't
sell books about Jimmy Carter and
Ronald Reagan even during the 1980
election time he adds
Among those titles experiencing
new-found or continuing popularity are
books by Karl Jung Ken Kesey. and
Barry Lopez "Hotel New Hampshire
and "The World According to Garp,
both by John Irving; ‘ The Milagro
Beanfield War " by John Nichols; "One
Hundred Years of Solitude," by Gabriel
Marquez and "Zen and the Art of Mo
torcycle Maintenance by Robert Pir
sig, he says
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