Kobo has released their annual Book Report, revealing notable reading habits that dominated 2022. This report is primarily aimed at Canadian users, but the book and authors are applicable to any English speaking market. 2022 was a big year for books, with Canadians reading for the equivalent of nearly 8,000 years. That’s a slight seven per cent dip from last year, understandable given relative freedom from lockdowns and an easing of pandemic restrictions.
When it comes to the times of day people are logging the most reading time, that varied depending on what part of the country you live in:
• Montreal, Edmonton and Winnipeg read most in the afternoon
• Toronto and Ottawa turn their pages after dinner
• Vancouver, Calgary and Regina readers hit the books before bed
“The last couple of years have been a wild ride for both readers and booksellers. In 2022, COVID restrictions eased, readers were able to leave the house, and Kobo –as a global digital bookseller –has witnessed some interesting shifts and trends in reading behavior’s around the world,” said Michael Tamblyn, CEO, Rakuten Kobo. “When it comes to our Canadian readers, we continue to see a love for local and Canadian authors and stories, a growing interesting self-published authors, a resurgence in travel-related reading and a bittersweet nostalgic trend for reading about the monarchy following the passing of the Queen. We’re excited to see what plot twists 2023 has in store.”
Restrictions relaxed and Canadians got the travel bug: With COVID restrictions easing, Kobo saw a change in how Canadians read. While books were still a favorite pastime, there was a renewed interest in certain genres that had dipped drastically during extended lockdowns. Most notably, Canadians were keen to dive back into travel related books, with an over 67 per cent rise in sales compared to the previous year. The most popular destinations among Canadian readers were Italy, Spain, Portugal and France. After two years of lockdown Canadians had trip-planning on the brain, with books on museums, tours and local landmarks increasing 224 per cent since 2021.
Saying “farewell” to Queen Elizabeth II had people turning pages about the monarchy: Following the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, Kobo users flocked to books about the royal family. In September, books about the monarchy spiked globally 2,065 per cent year-over-year. Canada was one of the most nostalgic countries, with reading about the queen increasing 1,548 per cent versus 2021. The most popular titles centered around Queen Elizabeth II herself, particularly her wit and steadfast dedication to duty. Karen Dolby’s The Wicked Wit of Queen Elizabeth II, Marc Roche’s Elizabeth II: Une Vie, un Règne and Ben Pimlott’s The Queen: Elizabeth II and the Monarchy were among the most read by Kobo readers.
BookTok is driving reading trends: TikTok continues to take the publishing industry by storm, with recommendations from BookTok influencers on the social media platform driving reading trends in Canada. Interestingly, the books shared go beyond the latest round of new releases and dig into the backlist, exposing a second wave of readers to older titles. The most popular trending author Kobo saw by far was Colleen Hoover, with year-over-year sales of her books It Ends With Us, Verity, Ugly Love and November 9 increasing between 305 to 456 per cent. Starting as a self-published author, Hoover’s books have been propelled into the spotlight and onto the bestseller list years after their release by voracious fans on social media, highlighting how drastically the industry is changing. Hoover is a book world phenomenon and currently outsells the Bible, Dr. Seuss, and James Patterson and John Grisham combined according to the New York Times. Other TikTok trending books among Kobo users include:
- The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Taylor Jenkins Reid sales grew 211 per cent
- Atomic Habits, James Clear sales grew 5,971 per cent
- A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, Holly Jackson sales grew 155 per cent
- It Happened One Summer, Tessa Bailey sales grew 288 per cent
Books adapted into TV shows and movies seeing a second wave of readers: The trend of streaming to reading continued this year, with TV series and movie adaptations introducing a new audience to older books. Following the release of a book adaptation, the title sees a flood of new readers as people take the story from the big screen to the book page. The standout success of the year is Heartstopper by Alice Oseman. Following the release of Netflix’s viral Heartstopper adaptation, sales of the graphic novel grew over 1,700 per cent year-over-year. But Oseman’s book isn’t alone –here are some other adapted books that saw a mass of new readers this year:
- Where the Crawdads Sing, Delia Owens sales increased 485 per cent
- Bullet Train, Kotaro Isaka sales increased 341 per cent
- Conversations with Friends, Sally Rooney sales increased 252 per cent
- Anatomy of a Scandal, Sarah Vaughan sales increased 192 per cent
Kobo Writing Life celebrates its 10th birthday: Kobo’s self-publishing platform, Kobo Writing Life (KWL), celebrated its 10th anniversary this year. Since its inception in 2012, KWL has helped independent authors reach audiences globally through Kobo’s digital bookstore. Self-publishing has drastically grown in popularity over the last decade and represents one of the largest publishers in Kobo’s catalogue. In many English-speaking markets, one in five books sold by Kobo is a KWL title and one in four self-published generally. “Through KWL, we are able to give voice to authors who might not have made it through the gatekeepers of traditional publishing houses,” said Michael Tamblyn, CEO, Rakuten Kobo. “But once they reach Kobo’s community of readers, they find new audiences all over the world. Having a strong self-publishing catalogue for readers who read broadly, across a range of genres, and being able to help writers reach new audiences globally are points of pride for us.”
Kobo Plus subscription expands offering by adding audiobooks in Canada: While the Kobo Plus all-you-can-read eBook subscription for just $9.99 per month has been in Canada since 2020, today the service expanded to audiobooks and now features read, listen, and read and listen options. “With Canadians out of the house and on-the-move, we’re excited to expand the Kobo Plus subscription offering to include audiobooks so Kobo users can fit reading into more places and more moments throughout their day,” said Bart Robers, Director, Audiobook and Subscription, Rakuten Kobo. “We know life is busy, but there is always time for reading. Whether you’re cleaning the house, walking to the office or standing in line at airport security, Canadians can now enjoy unlimited reading and listening for a low monthly fee.”
The catalogue includes contemporary fiction by beloved authors including Ian McEwan, Elena Ferrante, Alice Hoffman and Cherie Dimaline; classic mysteries from M. C. Beaton, Patricia Highsmith and Elizabeth Peters; self-help bestsellers from Gary Chapman, Stephen Covey and Deepak Chopra, and many more. While Kobo Plus subscribers enjoy limitless reading and listening, authors included in the catalogue see a range of benefits as well. Typically, following the launch of a book, revenue tends to decline with age as new releases hit the shelves –but inclusion in the Kobo Plus subscription continues to drive the revenue of a book as it’s discovered by new readers in the service, generating sales for a longer period of time with no decline in individual eBook or audiobook sales. Readers are also willing to try more new authors and read more widely across both new releases and backlist, as all-you-can-read removes the risk of trying something new.
Canada’s top 10 bestselling books of 2022: Whether it’s trending fiction titles, the latest popular romance or the most talked about thriller book, this year Canadian readers were craving female voices, with all of the top 10 bestselling books of the year authored by female writers. Here are the top books in Canada this year:
1. Where the Crawdads Sing, Delia Owens
2. Verity, Colleen Hoover
3. It Ends With Us, Colleen Hoover
4. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Taylor Jenkins Reid
5. The Maid, Nita Prose
6. Abandoned in Death, J. D. Robb
7. Five Little Indians, Michelle Good
8. The Diamond Eye, Kate Quinn
9. State of Terror, Louise Penny and Hillary Rodham Clinton
10. Book Lovers, Emily Henry
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.